Slender
by Star Tours Traveler
Summary: Batman investigates a string of mysterious disappearances near Gotham and soon discovers a link between the disappearances and the fictional "Slender Man." Belated Happy Halloween. Slightly AU. My first Batman story.
1. Prologue

**Summary: **Batman investigates a string of mysterious disappearances near Gotham and soon discovers a link between the disappearances and the fictional "Slender Man." Happy Belated Halloween.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing save for a few OCs. I might, perhaps, owe the Slender Man $20.00 (He's not getting it though.)

**A/N: **I wrote this intending to post it on Halloween but…(sigh) I got lazy and had other things to do so time got away from me and before I knew it, it was November 1st. Oh well. This is my first Batman story so be gentle on me.

In terms of Batman continuity, I'm kind of establishing my own sort of universe (Kinda like how they have a reboot and mix things up by changing character origins, personas, and such). In this universe, Tim Drake is in his teens as Robin; Dick Grayson is Nightwing and working in Blüdhaven. Barbara Gordon is Oracle while Cassandra Cain is slightly younger than Tim and is Blackbat but with a different backstory than her "League of Assassins" one. In this universe, she was born without vocal chords due to a birth defect and her parents were killed in a fashion similar to Bruce Wayne's (Gunned down before her eyes). The full backstory for this version of Cassandra Cain may be the basis of a prequel to this story if this story works out well.

As the title and summary indicates, this story deals with the internet meme and fakelore character the "Slender Man." I only heard about the character after watching YouTube videos of the Indie game Slender: The Eight Pages, and subsequently playing some of it myself. Eventually this story idea came to mind. This story draws heavily from some of the familiar aspects of "Slender: The Eight Pages" so if you haven't played it (or are too scared to) watch some videos on YouTube or give it a download (it's free).

That being said, sit back, relax, and enjoy the story…

* * *

**1:42 AM  
1st of October  
Somewhere in the woods to the west of Gotham City**

Elaine's heart was pounding as she ran through the woods, dropping her flashlight as she ran. She looked over her shoulder for a brief second, gasping in horror at what pursued her. She kept running, the light of the star lit sky overhead, her only hope of finding her way out. She quickly ran into a small building, a set of public restrooms for a nearby campground, and crouched down into one of the stalls. She didn't know if the restroom she was in was for men or women and at the moment she didn't care. The lights weren't on which only made her breathe more heavily. She quickly pulled out a notebook from her backpack and quickly wrote something on a blank page inside until she heard the sound of strange footsteps on the tiled floor outside the stall. She swallowed nervously as she peeked through the crack between the door and the tiled wall of the stall. She looked hard for a moment but saw nothing. She sighed with relief and began to turn back around when she saw what appeared to be two pairs of long legs covered by black fabric. Upon closer inspection, they were actually one pair of legs and a pair of inhumanly long arms. Elaine's eyes widened and she shook with fear as she slowly looked upward to see an empty face with no eyes, nose, or mouth, "looking" down at her. At that moment, everything went black.

* * *

**9:33 AM  
Wayne Mansion**

Bruce Wayne, Tim Drake, and Cassandra Cain sat at the dinner table, eating a late breakfast. The teenaged Tim was silently eating a bowl of corn flakes while the slightly younger Cassandra sat reading a book while eating some oatmeal. Bruce, having finished his meal, was reading the newspaper as Alfred entered with a pitcher of orange juice.

"Am I to assume that you are anxious to begin shopping for your Halloween Costume this year Master Drake?" Alfred asked, refreshing Tim's drink.

"I'm thinking I'd do something classic this year. How's Dracula sound to you Alfred?" Tim asked.

"I find the idea, subtly ironic." Alfred replied, pouring Bruce a glass as well.

"What do you mean?" Tim asked, confused.

"He means that Dracula's a vampire and vampires tend to turn into bats." Bruce said from behind his paper as Alfred moved on to Cass.

"Oh. Does that mean I can go as Batman for once?" Tim asked with a cheeky smile. Bruce merely glared at him from behind the paper.

"You'd have to get in line behind Dick." Bruce replied, Tim mumbling in mock-disappointment. They heard a rhythmic tapping on the table but they knew it was Cass using Morse code to communicate. Tim glanced over at his adopted sister who tapped out her message using the blunt end of her spoon while smirking teasingly at him. Her message translated as _"U make great zombie. No brain."_

"Very funny, Cass." Tim said, flicking a dry cornflake at her, "I don't hear you coming up with a better idea."

Cass began tapping out another reply, her smirk remaining on her face. _"Black Widow, Avengers."_

"You don't have the hair for it." Tim replied, sipping his orange juice. They then heard the phone ringing nearby. None of them moved to answer since they knew Alfred would answer and he did.

"Wayne residence." Alfred answered. After a moment, he lowered the receiver, hand over the mouthpiece and turned towards Bruce.

"Miss Gordon to speak with you Master Bruce." Alfred said as Bruce lowered the paper and took the phone from Alfred.

"Go ahead Barbara. What's happening?" Bruce asked, curious to know why the red haired Oracle was calling.

"_Bruce, I don't suppose you've heard of the disappearance out at Gotham State Park have you?"_ Barbara/Oracle asked.

"Elaine Williams, College student at Gotham State, majoring in medicine. Went camping with some friends yesterday evening, Reported missing this morning." Bruce rattled off. Tim and Cass both knew that something was up but remained silent.

"_Yeah well my dad's investigating and I heard him mention over the police radio that they've found some evidence that doesn't make any sense. He's calling it some elaborate prank."_ Barbara said.

"Abduction is never a prank." Bruce said, folding his newspaper and setting it down on the table.

"_Abduction? I never said anything about…never mind, I assume then that you're taking the case?"_ Barbara asked.

"Keep listening for chatter regarding the case. I'll pay a visit to the Commissioner tonight." Bruce said as he stood up.

"_Will do."_ Barbara replied before Bruce handed the receiver back to Alfred.

"Does that mean you won't be attending the Museum Gala tonight, Sir?" Alfred asked as he hung up the phone.

"I just came down with a cold." Bruce replied as he walked towards the secret lift to the Batcave.

* * *

**10:46 PM  
GCPD Headquarters – Rooftop**

The night sky of Gotham was illuminated by the light of the Bat signal. Commissioner Jim Gordon stood on the roof, checking his watch as he waited. Finally he happened to glance over his shoulder and saw, the outline of a familiar cape flapping in the wind standing near the access door to the roof.

"You're not going to believe this one." Jim said as he flipped the switch on the Bat signal, turning it off.

"And I always do. You're investigating the disappearance of Elaine Williams, who vanished from Gotham National Park early this morning." Batman said as he emerged from the shadows. Jim nodded and held up a piece of crumpled and slightly weathered notebook paper with strange writing on it inside of a clear plastic evidence bag. He handed the paper off to Batman who examined it carefully.

"We found this on the men's room wall at the Campgrounds. Her friends found the paper in the bathroom and alerted us. What do you make of it?" Jim asked, Batman continuing to look the page over. The page read simply "Don't look, or it takes you!" but the line covered the entire page.

"Aside from the writing, it was written in a panic in the dark." Batman said, activating of his cowl's multiple vision modes to scan the paper for any evidence invisible to the naked eye.

"The dark?" Jim asked, curious.

"She wrote the words thicker than normal so she could see it better in the limited light she had available to her." Batman said as he handed the paper back to Jim.

"Well it's still a mystery to us. Our only witness is no help at all so I called you." Jim said.

"Who was the witness?" Batman asked.

"A friend of the victim's. Roberto Ramirez, a computer nut. He was with her and two other friends when they went camping. He was the one who found the paper and led the others to report her disappearance. He has an airtight alibi in that he was with the rest of his friends when Elaine went to take a walk." Jim said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a recording device.

"And his statement?" Batman asked. Jim chuckled lightly, shaking his head in disbelief as he handed Batman the recorder.

"Listen for yourself." Jim replied as he stepped over near the bat signal and pulled out his pipe. Batman looked the recorder over before pressing play.

"_Tell us what happened, Mr. Ramirez, nice and easy. You're safe here."_ A woman officer, Renee Montoya as Batman recognized, said gently as the sound of a shuddering male voice could be heard in the background.

"_No I'm not! I'm not safe! He's still out there! He's gonna get me!"_ Ramirez said in a panicked tone.

"_He? He who?" _Renee asked.

"_He's got her. I saw him and he knows I did! He's gonna come after me, I know it! I just know it!" _Ramirez ranted insanely.

"_Who was it Mr. Ramirez? Someone you know?"_ Renee asked.

"_He was from the game! The game! Find the pages, you win! If he catches you, you LOSE!" _Ramirez continued to rant.

"_Pages? You mean like the one we found at the scene?" _Renee asked.

"_YES! The pages! I need to find them! Find them fast! He's coming, I can hear his footsteps!"_ Ramirez ranted, his rants beginning to dissolve into sobbing.

"_No one is going to get you here, Mr. Ramirez. Now who took Miss Williams?"_ Renee asked. Ramirez continued to sob for a moment before he managed to regain a degree of composure but not completely before answering.

"_It was…it was the man…the Slender Man."_ Ramirez replied in a fear filled voice. At that the recorder stopped. Batman mulled over the recording for a moment as Jim approached, holding his pipe in his hand.

"Poor kid. We had to put him in a straightjacket just to keep him under control. It's still not much to go on though. That's the only description he'd give us before we had to sedate him." Jim said.

"What about the other campers? What did they see?" Batman asked as he handed Jim the recorder back.

"Their story's slightly different. They were together, Ramirez and another camper, around their campfire when they heard a scream coming in the direction of the public restrooms. They both ran to investigate, one stayed outside to keep watch while Ramirez checked the restrooms. That's when Ramirez screamed and the other friend found him holding onto the men's room wall in fear." Jim explained.

"You say they found this paper in the same men's room?" Batman asked.

"Yeah. The forensics boys didn't find anything else in the men's room though." Jim said as Batman put a hand to his right ear.

"Oracle, is Dr. Crane still locked up in Arkham?" Batman asked. Jim, unable to hear anything, waited patiently as Batman listened to Oracle's reply.

"I see." Batman said as he turned back to Jim.

"You think Scarecrow's behind this?" Jim asked.

"Not anymore. He got shanked yesterday evening by Zsasz and is in Arkham's medical ward under guard. He's not the one we're after and it doesn't fit his usual M.O. This is someone else entirely." Batman replied as Jim turned away slightly at the sound of a police siren in the distance.

"So if Crane's not the abductor then who is it?" Jim asked, but when he didn't get a reply, he turned back to see that Batman had disappeared once again.

"One of these days, I'm gonna find out how you do that." Jim said with a smirk as he put his pipe in his mouth and headed for the doors.

* * *

**11:59 PM  
Batcave.**

Bruce had just parked the Batmobile and was walking towards the computer, pulling his hood off his head. As he entered, he saw Tim in his Robin suit but without his mask, while Cass stood nearby wearing her Blackbat suit, also without her mask. Tim was sitting at the computer, hammering away at the keys.

"What have you found?" Bruce asked as he stood over Tim's shoulder.

"Given what little we have to go on, somewhere between diddly and squat." Tim replied, bringing up social network profiles on the victim and her two friends from the camping trip, including Ramirez, as Cass tapped out an explanation with a small clicker in her hand.

"_BFFs from High School. GSU _(Gotham State University)_ diff majors." _Cass explained.

"Yeah, they're each good students. Elaine, the victim, is studying medicine, parents are divorced, has an older sister in the Military, a younger brother at Gotham Academy, lives with her mother, works part time as a desk clerk at the Gotham Hyatt, and enjoys Horror films. Ramirez, the witness turned drooling lunatic, is studying software programming, makes video game mods, works part time at McDonalds, obsessed with the paranormal, and one of your fans." Tim said, motioning to a list of Ramirez's likes which included Batman. Bruce silently looked over the other pages before narrowing his eyes in frustration.

"The only other connection to each other that stands out is something called GGC. Their text messages and online correspondences indicate that they were members or heavily involved with this group." Bruce said but both Tim and Cass scoffed.

"_GGC. Gotham Game Club"_ Cass answered.

"Gotham Gamer's Clan, Cass. It's a city wide club that exchanges all the latest news in video games. They also tend to band together in MMORPGs." Tim explained.

"They play video games a lot?" Bruce asked as Tim nodded.

"Hardcore. Ramirez complained in one of his texts that he felt like he was getting carpel tunnel. They spent seven hours one night playing Halo." Tim explained. Bruce was quiet for a moment, studying the information.

"Where does the camping trip come in?" Bruce asked.

"From what we can tell, they referred to something called 'the Tradition' in some of their messages and how they were looking forward to it. It apparently was supposed to take place last night but one of them couldn't make it." Tim explained.

"Who couldn't make it?" Bruce asked, curious. Tim proceeded to bring up the profile on a sixth person.

"Tyrone Green, a.k.a. TitanX2. Closet gamer, plays basketball for GSU, dad's in jail for armed robbery, keeps his nose clean, never been arrested or suspected of anything, volunteers at his local church, nice guy." Tim explained.

"_Broken leg."_ Cass added.

"Yeah, the reason he couldn't make 'the tradition' was due to that injury." Tim explained.

"There's nothing that stands out. We need to take a look at the scene of the abduction." Bruce said as he pulled the cowl back over his head. Tim and Cass both put their masks on, Tim pulling a black hood over his head and Cass pulling on a mask that covered her entire head. Before they could make a move however, the Batcave computer started beeping. They turned and saw that it was a phone call from Oracle. Bruce/Batman paused and pressed a button on the computer console.

"Go ahead, Barbara." Batman instructed.

"_Bruce, there's a lot of chatter over the Police scanners. Another person's been abducted near the abandoned farm on the edge of town. My dad and some of his officers are heading there right now."_ Barbara/Oracle said over the radio.

"Thanks, Barbara. I'm heading there now. Robin and Blackbat will investigate the scene of the first abduction in the meantime. I need you to try and find a connection between our two victims." Bruce instructed.

"Will do." Barbara replied before ending the call.

"You got that?" Bruce asked the two teenagers, both of whom nodded in agreement.

"We're on it, Batman." Robin replied as he and Cass ran for the R-Cycle and Batman to the Batmobile.

* * *

**End Chapter 1.**

**Please R&R…**

I'm envisioning the Arkham Asylum/Arkham City costumes for Batman and Robin (namely the hood for Robin. I thought that was a nice touch). Cassandra's costume is her Batgirl costume but she uses the Blackbat name instead of Batgirl. Why, will be explained in the prequel…if I decide to write it.

I chose to use Cass simply because I find the notion of a mute superhero/super-heroine rather intriguing. I like the idea.

Also, don't mistake my use of the Slender Man as the villain in this story for dislike of the character. I actually find it interesting and the game doesn't scare me at all ("Hey Slender Man! Come at me bro!" – my battle cry when playing "Slender: the Eight Pages.").


	2. 2 Victims 2 Pages

**12:51 AM  
2nd of October  
Abandoned Farm, North of Gotham.**

Jim Gordon was smoking his pipe as he mulled over the sight before him. It was an old grain silo that was long since empty. The farmhouse and barn had long since burned to the ground but the silo remained. The wooden structure was painted red but the paint was fading or otherwise chipped. Taped to the side of the silo was a piece of notebook paper with a crude drawing of a stick figure in the center and the word "NO" repeated over and over in two parallel vertical rows on the edges. Behind Jim were three squad cars with their lights flashing, two bicycles, an SUV, two police officers, Detectives Montoya and Bullock, a teenaged male and an older man, both shivering and shaking underneath the blankets the cops had provided them with. However it wasn't the cold that made them shake, but fear.

"Twice in one day, huh?" Jim asked as Batman approached from the shadows over his shoulder.

"Same as before?" Batman asked, stopping next to the Commissioner.

"Yeah only this time we have two witnesses." Jim said as Batman snatched the paper off the side of the silo.

"Another paper?" Batman asked, analyzing the page with his cowl's equipment.

"It's obviously not a ransom note. The kids are saying that it was some thin male again, probably the same guy who took our first victim." Jim said as Batman looked up from the paper.

"There's something else." Batman said, holding up the paper, "I'm picking up faint traces of the same psychotropic compounds that are used in the Scarecrow's fear toxin but missing a few ingredients."

"That explains why you asked your friend Oracle if Crane was still in Arkham." Jim said as Batman placed the paper in an evidence bag then handed it to the Commissioner.

"That and the state of fear the first witness was in." Batman said.

"So what would the toxin do without the missing ingredients?" Jim asked.

"I don't know. Not yet." Batman said as he turned and looked towards the two boys. Jim looked over towards them as well and predicted Batman's next question.

"Dumb kids were coming out here for a drug deal. An out of town trafficker comes here at night to do some distributing on occasion. That's his truck behind us." Jim said, motioning to the SUV.

"The dealer wasn't the one taken?" Batman asked, Jim shaking his head.

"No, one of the kids was. The Dealer has no idea who the attacker was but he gave us a better description than the kid but I'm kinda on the fence as to whether or not I believe him." Jim said.

"Believe him. If something had him scared enough to run to the cops, knowing full well he would be arrested for dealing, he's telling the truth." Batman said as Jim sighed and scratched the back of his head.

"You haven't heard the description of our guy yet though. Tall, arms that reach his knees, dress suit and tie, and here's the best part, no face." Jim explained, earning a curious look from the Dark Knight.

"What?" Batman asked.

"No face. They said he just has no face. He's got a head, just no eyes, mouth, nose, hair, ears…just a head." Jim explained, taking a drag of his pipe.

"Tell me the boy's exact words in describing the culprit." Batman said as Jim blew the smoke from his pipe out of his mouth before answering.

"It's the strangest thing. He used the exact same words used by the other witness, Ramirez, when describing the guy who took the first victim. He said he was a slender man." Jim said.

"Not a slender man, he said the slender man. I think Slender Man is a title not a description." Batman said. Jim tapped his chin with the end of his pipe in thought.

"Another new freak show?" Jim asked, but he had no reply. Batman had vanished once again.

* * *

**1:51 AM  
Gotham National Park**

Robin and Blackbat had easily entered the area and were picking through the long abandoned campsite from the night before using night vision sensors in their masks.

"Find anything?" Robin asked as he turned to Blackbat who shook her head.

"There's gotta be something. Oracle, anything in the police reports that might give us an idea what to look for?" Robin asked.

"_You may want to go to the men's room."_ Oracle replied over the comms.

"Why?" Robin asked, curiously as he turned towards where the public restrooms were located.

"_It's where they found a piece of evidence. It's also where the witness claims to have seen the kidnapper before going into a fit of hysteria."_ Oracle replied.

"Oh. For a moment there, I thought it was some veiled putdown." Robin said as he and Blackbat started running towards the restrooms.

"_Well…there's that too."_ Oracle chuckled.

"I'm starting to miss, Dick." Robin mumbled.

"_I heard that."_ Oracle commented. Robin could notice by the slight decrease in her pace and the odd shoulder movements that Blackbat was laughing. Finally they arrived at the restrooms. The building was larger than one would expect to find for a campsite restroom facility. It was fairly new as well, four stalls in the men's room along with two urinals and two sinks while the women's room had six stalls and two sinks. Outside the building was a streetlight built into the side of a tall oak tree, illuminating the area outside the restroom entrance.

"You want me to go in?" Robin asked Blackbat who glanced towards the men's room, then back to Robin. She then ran towards the tree with the streetlight, clamored up the tree and proceeded to perch herself atop the streetlight, her costume allowing her to remain hidden to the naked eye. Robin simply shrugged with a smirk.

"She's taken on Killer Croc singlehandedly and yet she's afraid to into go into a men's restroom." Robin mumbled as he stepped into the men's room. He reached into his utility belt and pulled out a small sensor device. He held the device into the air as he moved around, the device scanning the walls and air around him, sending readouts to his mask's displays.

"Oracle, are you seeing anything in these readings that I'm not?" Robin asked as he scanned.

"_Aside from a concentration of flatus that's common to men's rooms, no not really."_ Oracle replied. Robin paused for a moment with a furrowed brow.

"What?" He asked, confused.

"_Flatus…fart gas?" _Oracle asked before an autonomous deadpan voice spoke over their comlinks.

"_Are you quite finished?"_ the voice spoke. They recognized it as Blackbat's voice emulator for the comlinks.

"I'm not seeing anything out of the ordinary except…wait; didn't you say that the witness saw the kidnapper inside here?" Robin asked.

"_Yeah. He said he saw the kidnapper clearly against the wall beneath the window."_ Oracle replied as Robin turned and looked at said wall. It was a simple wall with white tiles that ran up to the same height as the stall walls but then stopped, leaving white paint over the concrete walls and ceiling. A lone wide window meant to provide fresh air and sunlight during the day was located near the ceiling. Robin's mask quickly displayed the measurements of the window and it only confused Robin even more.

"Then how did the kidnapper get out? This is a solid wall and the window is far too small for someone to climb through." Robin said as he knocked on the wall, looking for some kind of weak spot but he couldn't find one.

"_Are you sure?"_ Oracle asked.

"Positive. There's no way anyone could get out through here unless they went through the front door." Robin replied.

"_Found something!"_ Blackbat's voice emulator said. Robin quickly turned and ran out of the men's room in time to see, Blackbat tearing off into the woods. Robin quickly followed after her but Blackbat being the more agile of the two, easily outran him.

"What is it?!" Robin asked as he ran until she finally stopped and dropped down onto one knee. Robin finally caught up to her and saw what she did. It was a yellow flashlight with a cracked lens.

"A flashlight?" Robin asked as Blackbat examined the object before holding the blunt end of it up towards Robin, pointing at something on the bottom. Someone had written in permanent marker, "Josephine Williams" and then proceeded to give an address and phone number for someone in Gotham.

"We've found a flashlight. It looks like it belongs to our victim, but the name is wrong. It's not Elaine Williams, but a Josephine Williams." Robin said into the comlink as he waved the sensor over the flashlight a few times.

"_Josephine Williams is the victim's mother." _Oracle replied.

"I figured that." Robin said as Blackbat shrugged and put the flashlight back down.

"_Hold on, I'm getting something about that flashlight. There's some kind of residue on it."_ Oracle said as Robin switched his mask's view to a different setting, switching from night vision to "detective" mode. The mask proceeded to highlight spots on the flashlight that were covered in some strange substance except for a spot where the victim held the flashlight in her hand.

"You're right. What is this stuff?" Robin asked, Blackbat rubbing her chin in thought.

"_Hmm, according to the feed I'm getting off your scanner, the substance is a near match for Scarecrow's Fear Toxin. But Crane's still in Arkham. How could he be in two places at once? This doesn't fit him M.O."_ Oracle said.

"He could have one of his crones doing his dirty work." Robin suggested.

"_Crane usually works alone though." _Oracle replied.

"_It's not Crane." _Batman's voice rang through the comlinks.

"_Who is it then?" _Oracle asked.

"_I don't know yet, but I'm going to pay a visit to Dr. Crane in Arkham anyway. I'm heading there now."_ Batman replied.

"We're pretty much finished here at the crime scene anyway. We'll head back to the cave, see what we can find." Robin said as Blackbat transmitted the scans of the flashlight to the Batcave computer.

"_I'm forwarding some of the evidence data on the second victim to the Batcave. See if you can find a connection between our two victims while I deal with Crane."_ Batman instructed as Robin and Blackbat started to run back towards where the R-Cycle was.

"We're on it. Robin and Blackbat-…Blackbat?" Robin asked as he saw Blackbat slide to a halt, gripping the sides of her head and putting her back to a nearby tree in agony, sliding down towards the ground.

"Black! What's the matter?" Robin asked as Blackbat reached for her mask, pulling back the top layer before reaching for the layer that covered her mouth and pulling it down, showing that she was breathing heavily. She still had her domino mask on over her eyes.

"_Her pulse is increasing! Something's wrong!" _Oracle exclaimed as Robin quickly scooped her up in his arms.

"Hang on Black! We're getting you out of here!" Robin exclaimed as Robin continued running, Blackbat beginning to hyperventilate.

"_Bruce, are you-?"_ Oracle asked but was interrupted.

"_I'm five minutes out."_ Batman replied as Robin reached the R-Cycle, setting Blackbat down against the side of the bike before reaching into a storage compartment and pulled out a breath mask. He quickly placed the mask over Blackbat's face. As she continued to hyperventilate, Robin quickly grabbed an emergency kit from the storage compartment. He opened it up and pulled out an injector with a small phial of clear liquid. He attached the phial to the injector and pressed it up against Blackbat's neck.

"Here, this'll help until Batman gets here." Robin said as he injected her with the liquid. Her breathing quickly slowed down until she let out a sigh and drooped her head down, asleep from the drug. Robin wiped the sweat from his brow and started to look around.

"_Is she okay?" _Oracle asked.

"Yeah. I hit her with the knockout stuff. She'll be fine." Robin said as he continued looking around.

"_We'll learn more when we get back to the cave."_ Batman said. Robin didn't reply, he had spotted something.

"That wasn't here when we first arrived." Robin mumbled, looking at a red truck sitting near a small cargo container like one would use as at a construction site.

"_What is it?"_ Batman asked.

"Just a truck and a cargo container. Is there construction going on here?" Robin asked.

"_Yes, they're building a covered picnic area just up the road from where you are." _Oracle replied.

"That explains the container." Robin said as he sat down next to the unconscious Blackbat. In the distance his trained ears could hear the sound of the Batmobile's engine as it got closer.

* * *

**2:22 AM**  
**Wayne Manor  
**  
Cass was still in her Blackbat costume only without her masks and gloves, still unconscious. She was lying on her bed in her room, the covers pulled over her as she slept. Tim stood outside with Alfred. Tim was still in his Robin costume too only without his mask.

"I just don't get it Alfred. What happened to her to make her just suddenly lose it?" Tim asked.

"I'm afraid I do not know, Master Tim. Hopefully, Master Bruce will discover the reason." Alfred said as Tim nodded understandingly and started heading towards the secret entrance to the Batcave.

"Maybe I'll go check on him." Tim said, leaving Alfred to tend to the unconscious Cass. Down in the Batcave, Bruce, still in costume but with his mask pulled back, was examining something with an electronic microscope.

"Alfred says she's going to be alright, just in case you wanted to know." Tim said, annoyed that Bruce wasn't showing the least bit of concern for his adopted daughter.

"I already knew that." Bruce replied as Tim sat down at the computer chair.

"Of course you did. You could still show a little concern." Tim mumbled, still annoyed.

"You mentioned that the flashlight found at the crime scene had traces of the fear toxin on it?" Bruce asked.

"Yeah. It was covered in the stuff." Tim replied, glancing at the bagged flashlight near the microscope. He also noticed Cass's gloves near the microscope too.

"Did Cassandra put her hand to her face after handling the flashlight?" Bruce asked.

"I guess so. Why?" Tim asked as Bruce turned a computer monitor next to the microscope towards Tim, showing Blackbat's lower mask was under the scope's lens, but with a similar mode of vision as the cowl and mask's detective mode.

"She didn't realize it but the fear toxin got on her hands and at some point she rubbed a little bit of it onto her mask and she slowly inhaled it." Bruce said as Tim blinked surprised.

"So that's why she was acting strange. She was afraid of something." Tim said in realization.

"That's just it. This is a close facsimile of the fear toxin used by Scarecrow, only there isn't any sort of hallucinogen compounds in it. Meaning that all it does is trigger a sense of fear in the victim without a cause." Bruce explained.

"So she could've looked at a tree and suddenly become scared of it." Tim said, worried for Cass.

"She would've had an inexplicable wave of fear overtake her, for no reason." Bruce replied.

"Oh. So do we have any leads?" Tim asked.

"None yet, and my instincts tell me that whoever the culprit is, they only strike once a night." Bruce said.

"So he won't be striking again tonight?" Tim asked, with a yawn.

"No. You may know the second victim. Jonathan Raymond, he's a student at your school." Bruce instructed, causing Tim to scoff.

"Him? Yeah I know him. He's part of the bad crowd at school. Tries to sell drugs to the other kids, but gets caught all the time." Tim said with a roll of his eyes.

"See if there's a connection between him and Elaine Williams, the first victim." Bruce instructed as Tim started removing his gloves.

"I know of one off the top of my head, actually. They both attended the same High School, mine. Williams graduated last year and Raymond is a senior." Tim said, earning Bruce's attention.

"That's a start. See if you can find any more connections between them. I'm going to search for information on this 'Slender Man.'" Bruce said as he pulled his cowl over his head and headed back towards the Batmobile, leaving Tim looking curious as he watched the Dark Knight depart.

"Slender Man?" Tim asked before he turned back around towards the computer as the Batmobile roared out of the Batcave.

* * *

**End Chapter 2.**

**Please R&R…**


	3. Legend of the Slender Man

**2:58 AM  
Arkham Asylum – Medical Ward**

Jonathan "Scarecrow" Crane was asleep in his room, his arms strapped down to the bed to prevent escape. He had a bandaged wound near his stomach and he was sleeping peacefully, until he felt a draft coming in from the mysteriously opened window. Crane stuck his head up curiously but saw nothing. He suddenly felt a strong hand grab him by the collar of the hospital gown he was wearing and jerk up upwards. He looked and saw Batman glaring down at him.

"Batman?" Crane asked, surprised to see the Dark Knight standing over him.

"Someone is using a variation of your fear toxin to kidnap people in Gotham. I want to know who it is." Batman said as Crane scoffed.

"It's not me if that's what you're thinking. Go talk to the Joker if you want someone to put in a body cast, or better yet, put Zsasz in one for me. I'd love to see that maniac paralyzed for a while. Oh the things I could do to him-." Crane grinned as he marveled at the thoughts of revenge against the ax-murderer but he was quickly slammed against the bed and then pulled back up before he could continue.

"Who knows the formula to your fear toxin? Talk, while you still have a jaw." Batman threatened tersely.

"No one, but perhaps you, knows my formula, Batman! My toxin formula is one of my closely guarded secrets! There's no reason for me to give it up and no one I'd trust with it." Crane replied.

"Did you ever create a variation of the formula without the hallucinogenic ingredients? A variation that triggers the fear emotion without cause?" Batman asked, causing Crane to arch a curious eyebrow.

"Fear without cause? Tried it once but I didn't get any good results. No, the formula I use always has hallucinogens. The results without them would be lackluster…unless." Crane said as he pondered.

"Unless what?" Batman asked.

"Unless it was used in conjunction with some extra stimulus, like for example, the sight of a childhood monster long forgotten. The toxin would insure the person who saw it had something to be scared of when they saw it." Crane said, the new ideas of how to use the formula making him grin.

"So they saw something that triggered the fear reaction. Something like a Slender Man?" Batman asked. Crane merely shrugged.

"Slender man, tall man, fat man, short man, doesn't matter. They could see a leaf falling from a tree and be scared of it." Crane replied before Batman slammed him against the bed and punched him in the gut, causing him to let out a pained scream. When the orderlies came in and turned on the lights however, Crane was alone in his room. Later, Batman in the Batmobile was rocketing away from Arkham.

"Crane was a dead end. He only confirmed my suspicions that someone else is behind these kidnappings." Batman said.

"_What's your next move?" _Oracle asked.

"Tonight? Nothing. The trail is cold and unless our Slender Man strikes again, we've run out of options." Batman replied.

"_Hold on, did you say Slender Man?"_ Oracle asked, curiously.

"It's the term used by both witnesses to describe the kidnapper. You have something?" Batman asked.

"_I might. Does this Slender Man have long arms, wear a suit, and doesn't have a face?"_ Oracle asked back.

"What do you know about this, Barbara?" Batman asked.

"_It's an internet meme, Bruce. I'll forward you some materials on it." _Oracle replied as a display on one of the Batmobile's consoles started beeping.

"Hold on, Barbara, I've got another call." Batman said as he pressed a button, "Go ahead."

"_Batman, I think I might have something that can save Barbara the trouble of explaining the Slender Man." _Tim's voice rang through.

"_Tim, have you been listening?" _Barbara asked.

"_Hey, I've been helping out with the case, remember?"_ Tim asked back tauntingly.

"Enough! What do you have, Tim?" Batman asked, silencing the two.

"_I'll show you when you get here."_Tim replied as the Batmobile raced through the night.

* * *

**3:15 AM  
Batcave**

Batman climbed out of the Batmobile and was walking towards the computer when he noticed that Tim was standing over the computer chair while someone else worked at the computer. As Bruce approached, he noticed it was Cassandra.

"Are you feeling alright?" Bruce asked Cass who tapped out the letter Y, for yes, in response.

"So what's going on?" Bruce asked.

"Well, I heard you mentioning a Slender Man as you were leaving the cave to go visit Scarecrow in Arkham. Well I knew that I'd heard that name before and I remembered I'd heard it from Cass…so to speak. It's like what Barbara said; it's an internet meme, about a fake boogie man called the Slender Man." Tim explained.

"Aren't all boogie men fake?" Bruce said skeptically.

"Not as fake as this one though. It was only made about four years ago by a bunch of guys on an internet forum as part of a contest to Photoshop a bunch of ordinary photographs by adding a supernatural entity and pass them off as legit. One of the more popular ones was a myth about the Slender Man, a guy matching the description given by each of the witnesses in our two abduction cases so far. Interestingly enough, the Slender Man myth says that he follows people who see him and they eventually disappear without a trace." Tim explained, intriguing the Dark Knight.

"It almost matches the evidence we have so far." Bruce said as Cassandra tapped out another message.

"_Game."_ She said.

"Oh right, Cass thinks this will fill in some of the details." Tim said as Cass brought up a splash screen for a video game called "Slender: The Eight Pages."

"What's this?" Bruce asked.

"It's a video game based on the Slender Man myth. The objective is to collect eight pieces of paper before the Slender Man catches you and you're equipped with only a flashlight." Tim explained as Cass started playing. She started moving her character through the wooded area until she came across a tall red object with a piece of paper on the side of it.

"That's one of the pages." Tim said as Cass collected the paper, causing a distant booming sound to repeat in the game.

"What's that?" Bruce asked.

"That means the Slender Man knows you're there and he's coming for you. Now it's a game of evasion. There's no hiding from him, just evasion. Kinda like you with the run-of-the-mill henchmen. There's no hiding from the Batman." Tim said as Bruce narrowed his eyes in thought.

"That building you found the paper on, what was it?" Bruce asked.

"Beats me. Cass knows more about this than I do." Tim replied as Cass used her free hand to tap out her response.

"_Rock?"_ she replied as her character came across a large collection of rusted fuel tanks, one of which had a paper on it. This paper however, surprised Bruce.

"Wait! Pause!" Bruce ordered as Cass hit the escape key, pausing the game.

"What is it?" Tim asked as Bruce evicted Cass from the chair, sitting down and minimizing the game, bringing up a scan of a similar piece of paper exactly like the one in the game.

"Look familiar?" Bruce asked.

"It's one of the pages from the game. So what?" Tim asked.

"It was left at the scene of the first abduction. Another page, similar to this one, was found on the side of the abandoned silo at the burned down farm north of Gotham where the second abduction took place." Bruce said, causing Cass and Tim to look at each other in surprise.

"Someone…is imitating the game?" Tim asked.

"It wouldn't be the first time. Years ago, back when Dick was Robin, one of our first encounters with Edward Nigma, a.k.a. the Riddler, was when he tried to take revenge on a former employer for stealing a game that Nigma had created." Bruce explained as he worked at the computer. Cass knew what he was referring to.

"_Riddle of the Minotaur." _She tapped out.

"You knew that?" Tim asked as Cass shrugged innocently.

"It isn't magazines of shirtless muscle-bound men that Mistress Cassandra reads with a flashlight under the covers in her room at nights, Master Tim." Alfred said as he walked through.

"_Unless Bane was involved."_ Cass replied with another shrug.

"You think the maker of the game's responsible for this?" Tim asked.

"No. The game is actually our connection. Look here. This is the web activity of both of our victims, two of the witnesses, and the friends of the first victim. Here, they had all downloaded copies of the Slender Man game to the computers so they were familiar with the Slender Man." Bruce explained.

"And the pages only further the connection to the game." Tim added.

"Yes. We can conclude so far, that whoever our alleged Slender Man is, is familiar with the Slender Man mythos as well as the game, knew the victims, knew that they too were familiar with the game, and knew where they were going to be on the nights they were abducted. Anyone fitting those parameters is likely to be the Slender Man. Now if we can find out where he'll strike next, we can catch him." Bruce said.

"Maybe this game can help." Tim suggested.

"Right. Cassandra, I'm putting you on that. Look for places in the game where the pages turn up." Bruce instructed as he got out of the chair, allowing Cassandra the use of it.

"What about me?" Tim asked.

"At school, I want you to talk to students who knew the victims. Talk to their friends. Find out what you can. Then tonight, we'll be on patrol in the Batwing, and then if the Slender Man strikes again, we'll be able to get there before the cops do." Bruce said as he started removing his costume.

* * *

**11:45 AM  
Gotham Academy – Cafeteria**

Tim Drake had had to act surprised at the announcement that Raymond had disappeared the night before. Finally lunch had rolled around and he'd quickly found the person he was looking for. Albert "Al" Williams, Elaine William's younger brother. Al was quietly poking at his food, lost in thought.

"Hey, Al." Tim greeted as he approached.

"Drake? What do you want?" Al asked.

"Just wanted to give my condolences. I heard about your sister." Tim said as Al sighed.

"You heard, huh?" Al asked as Tim sat down across from him.

"It was all over the news." Tim replied as he pulled a PB&J from his lunchbox, "What's your take on it?"

"I dunno. I really don't know what to make of it. Why would someone want to abduct my sister? We don't have any money and there haven't been any ransom demands. So why would they kidnap her? And on the same night as 'the tradition,' no less." Al grumbled.

"The Tradition?" Tim asked, confused, while taking a bite of his sandwich.

"Yeah the cops were curious about that too. The Tradition is, every year on the first of October, my sister and her friends go camping in the woods. Apparently during their freshman year, they all became friends on a similar camping trip and they celebrate their friendship by going camping on the first of October each year." Al explained.

"Sounds cool." Tim said, before hearing a commotion across the room. He looked over to see Cass, a small laptop computer in front of her, and a mixed crowd of male and female students huddled around her, some exclaiming to "run" for some reason. Cass looked as if she was concentrating hard on the computer screen.

"What's going on over there?" Al asked. Tim smirked.

"I imagine its Cass's new favorite obsession. She's obsessed with trying to beat this Indie Horror game called-." "Slender? Slender: the Eight Pages?" Al asked, surprising Tim.

"You know about it?" Tim asked, curiously.

"Yeah. My sister…well she downloaded it to her computer. It scares the crap out of me when I play it, but she played it without fear." Al said as Tim shrugged.

"It's like me when I play video games. Something in me always can tell it's not real and so I don't get scared by it." Tim said, taking another bite of his sandwich.

"Lucky you." Al mumbled.

"Can I ask you something about your sister?" Tim asked, taking a swig of milk.

"Sure." Al replied, looking distant again.

"The Tradition…how did it start?" Tim asked. Al smirked in amusement at the thought.

"Have you ever heard of Dr. Brooks, the school counselor, hosting those 'Psych Hikes'?" Al asked as Tim snickered.

"Those ridiculous camping trips that the Doc thought could help 'expand the horizons of young minds'? Didn't he quit those?" Tim asked in amusement.

"Yeah, because my sister and her friends started the tradition five years ago of pulling pranks on the Doc on each Psych Hike. I guess after four years of constant pranking, he finally quit doing them." Al said as the bell rang.

"It's been nice talking to you, Al. I hope your sister comes home safe and sound." Tim said as Al smiled and nodded.

"Thanks, Drake. There is hope though." Al said.

"Oh yeah?" Tim asked.

"Rumor has it, that Batman's on the case." Al said as Tim smirked.

"Really? Then she's as good as saved. Probably means someone like the Joker or Scarecrow's behind it." Tim said as Al turned pail.

"Jeez I hope it's not either one. Elaine hates clowns." Al remarked as Tim chuckled.

"Doesn't most of Gotham?" Tim mumbled as he and Al headed for class.

* * *

**12:01 AM  
3rd of October  
Gotham National Park**

Detectives Montoya and Bullock parked their squad car, shutting off all lights. Montoya sighing heavily in frustration.

"So who are ya bettin' on?" Bullock asked.

"What?" Montoya asked back, confused at her partner's question.

"The new freak-job kidnappin' people. I think it's that Scarecrow fella." Bullock said, taking a bite of a fresh doughnut. Montoya sighed again.

"No. It's not Scarecrow. Didn't you hear the Commissioner? He says Batman checked and Jonathan Crane's still in Arkham. Batman says it's a new guy." Renee said as she reclined in the passenger seat slightly.

"Whatever." Bullock said, glancing out the window at the growing fog.

"Why are we staking this place out anyway?" Renee asked.

"Commish' thought the freak might show up here again." Bullock replied, taking a sip of coffee then looking at it peculiarly.

"You just drank my espresso, didn't you?" Renee asked, although it was more of a statement, as Bullock groaned. Renee suddenly sat up, leaning forward and reaching for her gun and a flashlight.

"I saw something!" Renee exclaimed as Bullock turned the car lights on, illuminating the forest before them, but all they saw was a red truck sitting in front of a cargo container.

"Look, it's a parked truck." Bullock said mockingly, turning the lights back off, but Renee wasn't convinced.

"I saw something, Bullock! I'm going to take a look." Renee said as she climbed out of the car, turned on her flashlight, and started walking towards the parked truck and cargo container. She looked around and as she rounded the back side of the container, she suddenly felt her heart begin to race, her head starting to sweat, and her hands become shaky.

"Who's there?" She asked, holding her flashlight next to her gun as she looked around but saw nothing but the foggy woods, truck, and container.

"GCPD! Show yourself!" She ordered but she saw nothing and got no reply. She wiped the sweat from her brow and started to walk back towards the squad car when she heard the sound of crunching leaves behind her. She whirled around and saw, standing before her, was the faceless head of the Slender Man. She instinctively pulled the trigger but she felt her hand suddenly grasped by something and pulled upwards, firing into the air. Back in the squad car, Bullock heard the shot and quickly turned on the headlights, leapt from the car, grabbing a shotgun between the seats, and running towards the containers while yelling into his police radio.

"SHOTS FIRED, SHOTS FIRED! GOTHAM NATIONAL PARK! 10-11, OFFICERS UNDER-…fire." Bullock exclaimed but when he rounded the corner of the container, he saw nothing. He looked down on the ground and saw a dropped flashlight next to a smoking handgun, while stuck to the side of the container was a piece of notebook paper with a warning that read "Leave me alone."

* * *

**End Chapter 3.**

**Please R&R…**


	4. Mistress of Magic

**12:02 AM  
3rd of October  
The Home of Dr. Wilberforce Brooks**

Dr. Brooks, the School Counselor at Gotham Academy, stood in his kitchen, pouring a glass of sparkling grape juice. After he placed the bottle back in the refrigerator, he closed the door and turned only to see the silhouette of a tall figure with bat-like ears on his head and wearing a cape, standing in front of the window.

"Dr. Brooks." Batman said as he approached.

"Who-who are you?" the doctor asked fearfully, setting down the glass.

"You're the student counselor from Gotham Academy." Batman said, ignoring the doctor's question.

"Batman? Are you Batman?" the doctor asked as he fumbled to turn on the light over the kitchen stove, and when he finally did, he saw the Dark Knight himself standing before him.

"You're also a former classmate of Dr. Jonathan Crane, the Scarecrow." Batman said as the doctor sighed and ran a hand over his face.

"I regret ever meeting the man. Yes I knew Crane. He's not escaped Arkham has he?" Brooks asked nervously.

"No. But there's a new criminal out there that's using a variation on the Scarecrow's fear toxin. You knew Dr. Crane and you helped testify against him at his trial as an expert witness. You identified the compounds used in the fear toxin so you would know how to produce it." Batman said as he backed the doctor towards the wall.

"I may know the formula, but only because I happened to see Crane's notes on them before he went insane!" the doctor pleaded as he knocked a picture frame off a nearby table as he backed up.

"What do you know about the Slender Man?" Batman asked as the doctor fell backwards into a chair.

"Slender man? What's a Slender Man?" the doctor asked, confused.

"Did you know Elaine Williams or Jonathan Raymond?" Batman asked.

"Williams? Raymond? Yes I knew them. They're both Gotham Academy alumni, only Raymond is still there and Williams graduated. I understand that they've disappeared though but I don't know anything about that." The doctor replied as he squirmed in his chair, seemingly from pain. Batman paused curiously.

"Are you in pain, doctor?" Batman asked as the doctor pulled a prescription bottle from his pocket.

"Yes. I'm recovering from back surgery. Every time I put my back to something or bend over too far, it causes me pain." The doctor replied, popping a couple of pills.

"Then what are those?" Batman asked as he pointed to two custom made extension arms leaning against a nearby wall. They were designed so they'd fit over the forearm and control a human sized artificial hand.

"Those? My niece bought them for me so I can pick stuff up off the ground without bending over." The doctor said as Batman picked up one of the tools and began looking it over. Finally he set the tool down and turned back to the doctor.

"Does anyone else know about your previous connection to Crane or his fear toxin?" Batman asked.

"Only my niece. She was one of the Scarecrow's victims." The doctor said as he glanced over at a picture of him and his niece on the wall. When he turned back towards Batman, he saw that he had disappeared without a trace. Soon in the skies over Gotham, Batman flew over the city in the Batwing, Robin and Blackbat sitting behind him. Blackbat had her laptop in front of her.

"Cass says there are ten different locations for the pages to appear in Slender. She's taken screenshots of them and flagged one that stood out." Robin said as Bruce set the Batwing to autopilot and looked down at a display as the images of various structures and objects cycled through. Batman paused the cycling images on one that was a tall rock-like structure.

"What's that?" Batman asked as Blackbat wrote out a caption on her computer which appeared on the display. The caption read _"Silo: according to a map of the game found online."_

"A Silo? Wasn't that where the second victim was taken?" Robin asked.

"Yes. And here, this structure. Doesn't it look like the public restroom building at Gotham National Park?" Batman asked, pointing at the image of a structure.

"Yeah. It does." Robin said as Batman quickly arranged the images in a collage on the screen, marking the Silo and Restrooms with a red X on the screen.

"Which leaves eight possible locations and six possible victims." Batman said as he started entering instructions into the Batwing's computer.

"_Next location?"_ Blackbat asked with her voice emulator.

"We cross-reference the landmarks from the game with actual locations here in and around Gotham." Batman replied as Robin leaned forward towards the screen.

"I think I may actually have seen one of those locations. The truck and the container." Robin said as Batman turned to the controls.

"Where?"

"Gotham National Park, near where the first victim was taken." Robin said as the Batwing lurched to the left as it veered towards the park.

* * *

**12:20 AM  
Gotham National Park**

Harvey Bullock leaned hopelessly against the side of his squad car. Gordon and two additional Squad cars had arrived a mere two minutes ago and so far they hadn't found any trace of the missing Detective Montoya. Gordon was about to start searching the crime scene himself when…

"Busy week, Jim?" Batman asked as he emerged from the shadows.

"Yeah but now it's getting personal. Detective Montoya was the one abducted this time." Jim replied, holding up the third page. He was not at all pleased with the recent turn of events.

"Detective Montoya?" Batman asked, genuinely surprised as he examined the page with his cowl's sensors.

"Yeah I know. I'm beginning to wonder if these kidnappings really are random and any connections are coincidental." Jim said before noticing a figure skulking near the front bumper of the truck. He was about to draw his pistol when Batman stopped him.

"It's Blackbat. She's examining the area for clues." Batman said as Jim relaxed.

"You're really dedicated to this case if you've brought the new kid with you." Jim said as he watched the silhouette of Blackbat looking the car over. Robin was still in the Batwing which was idling high up in the air overhead.

"Detective Montoya's abduction might actually be a break for us. The previous two victims were connected to Gotham Academy as students." Batman explained, handing the paper back to the Commissioner.

"But Montoya never went to Gotham Academy." Gordon said.

"No. But I know there's a connection that will link her and our other two victims together." Batman said as he thought for a moment.

"How many more people have to vanish before we catch the guy? Are you sure this isn't random?" Jim asked.

"This is too premeditated to be random. There's a reason specific victims were taken. By my guess, there are a total of eight targets and so far only three have been taken. One victim a night it seems. The suspect is using a variation of Scarecrow's fear toxin to weaken the victim before abducting them. Our suspect is also using an internet meme known as the Slender Man as his cover." Batman explained as the Commissioner noticed Blackbat had disappeared entirely. He moved forward a bit, looking for a sign.

"Any idea what the connection is?" Jim asked before turning and noticing that Batman had disappeared yet again.

* * *

**4:51 PM  
Wayne Tower – The Office of Bruce Wayne.**

Bruce Wayne stood staring out the windows of his office, his mind trying to come up with connections to the case. He wasn't expecting there to be a knock at the door.

"Come in." Bruce said as he heard the door open accompanied by the whirring sound of a small motor on an electric wheelchair. Bruce knew the sound and turned to see the red-headed former Batgirl rolling into his office.

"Still trying to figure out the Slender Man case?" Barbara Gordon asked after closing the door behind her.

"Dr. Brooks had an airtight alibi for the third kidnapping. I was interrogating him at the time." Bruce said.

"About him, I did some digging and I found out there's a connection between him, and all three of the victims." Barbara said as she flipped open a panel hidden under the left armrest on her chair, and pressed a button, causing the tip of her chair's control stick to open up and project a holographic display of a GCPD Police Report.

"Dr. Brooks filed a report against Jonathan Raymond last year for injuring a fellow student in a prank gone wrong during one of his Psych Hikes. The victim was Raymond's girlfriend at the time, Gotham Academy Senior: Wilhelmina Carde. Goes by the nickname "Willy" or "Wild Card." The Detective assigned to the case was Renee Montoya who couldn't find any substantial evidence to charge Raymond. It also was the last of the Doctor's Psych Hikes. And as you already know, Elaine Williams was part of the first group to initiate the 'tradition' of pulling pranks during the Psych Hikes." Barbara explained as Bruce pondered the new evidence.

"What became of Carde?" Bruce asked.

"She's still in school. She's gotten a part-time job working as a waitress at the 'Rabbits and Hats' club, a venue that's big in the Professional Magicians' circuit." Barbara explained as Bruce smirked.

"I know. An old friend of mine runs the place." Bruce said as Barbara leaned back in her chair.

"Zatanna Zatara, I know. But isn't she picky with her choice of employees?" Barbara asked.

"Very. Her employees are regular witnesses to the secrets of a magician's acts and she needs the trustworthy type that isn't one to talk." Bruce said as he glanced towards the window for a moment before turning back towards Barbara with a thoughtful smirk.

"What are you doing tonight?" Bruce asked. Barbara smirked back, deactivating the hologram.

"Apparently acting as arm candy for the illustrious Bruce Wayne." Barbara replied as she turned her chair towards the door.

* * *

**9:20 PM  
Rabbits and Hats Club**

To say that the Rabbits and Hats Club was abuzz with excitement was certainly an understatement as a black limousine pulled up to the front doors, and out stepped none other than Gotham's most eligible bachelor, Billionaire Bruce Wayne in his best suit and red tie with the gorgeous redheaded Barbara Gordon in a stunning black dress with a split that went up to just halfway up her thighs and accompanied by one of Wayne's two adopted youths, Tim Drake in a suit matching Wayne's only in his size. Cassandra was oddly missing. The club had three semi-circular levels each level with just as semi-circular booths. Using the wheelchair ramp, Bruce escorted Barbara to the bottom level, Tim close behind, as they were shown to one of the tables nearest the stage.

"I'm sorry Cassandra couldn't be here." Barbara said as Bruce and Tim sat down, Bruce sitting next to her.

"She had homework to do." Bruce replied, receiving an annoyed look from Barbara.

"You made her sit out this show because of homework?" Barbara asked. She and Bruce were obviously referring to the Wayne family's night work.

"She volunteered." Bruce shrugged innocently.

"You think she can do it on her own?" Barbara asked, a little concerned.

"I put in a call." Bruce replied with a small smile, confusing Barbara and even Tim.

"What call?" Tim asked. Before Bruce could answer, the lights in the club had dimmed while a spotlight shined down on a spot center stage. In a flash and a burst of colored smoke appeared the beautiful raven haired magician, Zatanna in her usual dress suit, gloves, top hat, and stockings.

"Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen and welcome to the Rabbit's and Hats Club. Before I begin, I'd just need to make a brief announcement…now where did I put that card?" Zatanna asked as she removed her hat, stuck her hand inside, pulling the hat completely up to her elbow, the hat not breaking or anything as she dug around for something until she smirked and started to pull out a long camera tripod complete with camera.

"Oh right. Please no flash or video photography." Zatanna said with a coy smile as the audience applauded at the performance. One of the Club employees then approached and took away the camera and tripod during the applause.

"Our first act will begin shortly, so sit back, relax, and enjoy the show." Zatanna said with a bow as the audience continued to applaud and the spotlight went out. As soon as it had and the houselights went up, Zatanna approached Wayne's table.

"Well-well, if it isn't three of my most favorite customers." Zatanna said as she pulled a chair around to sit across from the three.

"Hello Zatanna." Bruce greeted with a polite smile.

"There's something wrong with your face, Bruce. Oh right, you're not brooding like usual." Zatanna said softly with a teasing smile. She was well aware of Bruce, Tim, and Barbara's alternate identities.

"Ooh I forgot you had claws, Zee." Barbara said as Zatanna chuckled.

"Thanks, Barb. I'm glad to know someone at this table can at least have fun for a change." Zatanna said, looking at Bruce.

"Bruce could always use a bit of ribbing now and then." Barbara said.

"Believe me, I know. Now, as for the reason you're here." Zatanna said with a piercing gaze towards Bruce while smirking knowingly all the while.

"Can't I just come and visit a good friend for no reason?" Bruce asked innocently.

"You? No. You only ever visit when you want something. But this is a first in that you've come in your other suit and with friends…and aren't there usually three of you now?" Zatanna asked, noticing the lack of a certain girl.

"She had homework." Tim commented as Zatanna's eye arched curiously.

"Ah. Any particular subject?" Zatanna asked. Bruce took a sip of water before answering.

"Psychiatry."

* * *

**9:27 PM  
Gotham Academy – Student Counselor's Office**

The entire school was dark with only the odd lights outside to illuminate the courtyard and building exterior. There wasn't a soul in sight, which worked perfectly for Blackbat as she scaled the side of the building, easily undoing the window lock to the office of Dr. Brooks on the second floor, opening the window and slipping inside, leaving the window opened. Using her mask's night vision, she walked through the office, taking great care to avoid making a sound as she knew the school security guard was making his rounds. She slinked over towards the file cabinets and easily picked the lock on one of the drawers. She quietly opened the drawer and began thumbing through the files, searching for something. She didn't find what she was looking for in that drawer and closed it, locking it back before picking the lock on another and opening it, again thumbing through the files before closing it and moving on down the cabinet.

As she searched the bottom drawer, she heard footsteps on the floor outside the office and froze. She quickly and quietly closed the drawer and slipped back into a corner, hiding behind a leather fainting couch in the Counselor's office. She heard the sound of keys jingling and saw the door opening. She expected it to be the security guard but was instead surprised to see a tall figure with inhumanly long arms and wearing a black suit with a white shirt and black tie but what surprised her most was that the figure's face was absolutely blank. No eyes, no mouth, no nose, no hair, no ears. Blackbat immediately recognized the figure from the game she had been playing regularly for over two days…

The Slender Man.

* * *

**End Chapter 4.**


	5. Zatanna's Talisman

Blackbat remained hidden behind the leather couch as the Slender Man stood in the doorway. He "looked" around for a second before turning towards the file cabinets and reaching into his suit pocket. He then produced a small key from his pocket and proceeded to unlock a drawer two cabinets over from where Blackbat had been searching. He pulled the drawer open before reaching for something inside its suit, but before it could…

"Hey! Who are you? What are you doing here?" the Campus Security Guard asked. The Slender Man snapped its head around towards him and raised its long hand towards the guard. Before the Slender Man could touch him though, a Batarang flew in and struck the Slender Man's arm. Slender Man turned just in time to see Blackbat leap towards him with a flying kick, but instead of striking the Slender Man she struck the cabinets. Slender Man was now, somehow, out in the hall behind the guard, grabbing the guard's face with his hand from behind causing the guard to suddenly let out a muffled shriek of terror as Blackbat bounded off the side of the cabinet and out into the hall, intentionally kicking the guard in the side, using the force of the kick to pry him loose from the Slender Man's grasp. The guard fell to the floor, letting out a brief shriek of fear before passing out from fright.

Blackbat leapt at the Slender Man but he vanished before her very eyes. She looked down the hall to see he had somehow teleported to the end of the hall, staring at her. She threw a Batarang towards the Slender Man only for it to become embedded in the wall behind the Slender Man who was suddenly inches in front of her, somehow evading the Batarang and staring down at her. She instinctively leapt back, throwing down a smoke bomb and leaping back into the counselor's office under the cover of the smoke, quickly grabbing the unconscious security guard and carrying him over her shoulder towards the window in the process. She was about to leap through it when the Slender Man suddenly appeared between her and the window, forcing her to slide to a halt. She froze in her steps for a moment before continuing her charge. This time she collided, headfirst, with the Slender Man, knocking him and herself with the unconscious guard through the window. As she plummeted she heard a short hiss and suddenly saw that the Slender Man had vanished again. She and the guard landed in the bushes on the ground outside beneath the window. She started to climb to her feet but as she did, she saw the Slender Man appear a few feet in front of her. She suddenly felt a powerful sense of fear overtake her and she nearly turned and ran but instead stood her ground, putting a shaky hand to her utility belt as she realized she'd been hit with the fear toxin. Before either she or the Slender Man could do anything though…

"Hey skinny!" a man's voice yelled before a figure in black, taller than Blackbat but shorter than Slender Man, flew in with a kick, knocking the Slender Man back some distance. The man turned quickly towards Blackbat, revealing his messy black hair and domino mask, the blue bird emblem emblazoned across his chest. The man smirked before pulling a pair of eskrima sticks from his back and dropping into a fighting stance.

"Take a minute to collect yourself, kid. I'll deal with skinny over here." Nightwing said as Blackbat reached into her utility belt, struggling to keep from passing out from fear. Nightwing waited patiently as Slender Man climbed to his feet but suddenly vanished as soon as he had. Nightwing waited patiently for him to reappear but when he saw no sign of the Slender Man, he holstered the eskrima sticks and turned towards Blackbat just as she injected herself with an antidote to the fear toxin and let out a heavy sigh of relief.

"You okay, kid?" Nightwing asked as he helped her to her feet. She shook her head and turned towards the guard, staggering forward into Nightwing's arms.

"Easy now. The antidote's meant for Scarecrow's toxin, not this lighter stuff. Don't push yourself." Nightwing said as he held her up. He then helped her lean against one of the bushes while pulling out a small injector from his belt and injecting the unconscious guard with the same antidote. As he turned around he noticed that Blackbat had removed her outer mask, leaving her domino mask over her eyes, and looking at him curiously but Nightwing read her expression and predicted her question.

"Batman thought you might need backup, so he called me. Now let's get what we came here for." Nightwing said, as he picked up the unconscious guard.

* * *

**10:50 PM  
Rabbits and Hats Club**

The show had been over for a little over twenty minutes, and the patrons were slowly filing out, including the Wayne party, who had meticulously waited until they were the last of the guests to leave. As Bruce, Barbara, and Tim approached the exit, where Zatanna was personally thanking her guests for their patronage, Zatanna smiled towards Bruce.

"Glad you could visit, Bruce. Although I can't help but wonder if this is the last I'll see of you tonight." Zatanna said as she shook Bruce's hand, subtly slipping a card of some sort up his sleeve.

"You never know. I can never resist a lovely woman in a suit and stockings." Bruce said, playing up the playboy act. Zatanna smiled appreciatively and tapped her hat forward slightly.

"Then I guess I'll see you sometime soon." Zatanna said, as she started to walk towards the backstage doors, a bit of a saunter in her walk. Bruce and Tim watched her leave, although Tim had more genuine interest than Wayne. Barbara was being helped into the limo by Alfred.

"Hey Bruce, do you mind if I come with you when-." "Get in the car." Bruce interrupted, shooting down Tim's request before he even made it.

* * *

**11:02 PM  
Rabbits and Hats Club – Zatanna's Dressing Room.**

Zatanna had thrown on a red robe and had exchanged her heels for a pair of white slippers. Her hat hung on a hat stand by the door. As she sat brushing her hair in front of her makeup mirror, she couldn't help but notice that she was no longer alone in the room.

"Hmm, took you long enough." Zatanna said as Batman stepped closer into the light.

"I didn't come here for the show, Zatanna." Batman said as Zatanna nodded understandingly.

"I called it. So what's the problem?" Zatanna asked as Batman produced a photo of the Slender Man.

"He's called the-." "Slender Man. I know. I do frequent a few paranormal websites on occasion." Zatanna said as Batman pocketed the photo.

"Did you know he's also responsible for at least three abductions and is likely to strike again tonight?" Batman asked as Zatanna arched a curious eyebrow.

"Abductions? I thought the Slender Man was a fake?" Zatanna asked.

"He is. But someone's using the Slender Man as an alias to abduct people. He uses a lesser version of the Scarecrow's fear toxin to disable his victims. In the right dosage, it renders them unconscious. He then kidnaps them, leaving behind a page similar to the ones found in a computer game based on the Slender Man myth as proof that he's taken someone. He also appears to have the ability to teleport at will, bypassing anything between him and his target." Batman explained.

"Teleport?" Zatanna asked, leaning forward with a curious expression.

"You know something?" Batman asked.

"I might. Exactly how does he teleport?" Zatanna asked.

"According to Blackbat and Nightwing, he just seems to vanish then reappear in a different location." Batman said. Zatanna scowled and clinched her fists.

"Son of a-…" Zatanna hissed angrily before looking back up at Batman, "I think I can explain the teleporting. About two weeks ago, I had created a special talisman to use in a new act. After rehearsal, there was a problem with some guy demanding to see his girlfriend and not taking no for an answer. I stepped out of my dressing room to deal with him and when I came back, the talisman was gone. The talisman uses a mixture of invisibility and teleporting, and to the audience, it behaves exactly like you described the Slender Man's teleporting."

"Wouldn't you need an understanding of magic to operate it?" Batman asked.

"No, that's the thing. I designed it to require virtually no knowledge of magic to operate. It responds to the user's will. They just have to will themselves there, but with one limitation. They have to be able to see where they want to teleport; otherwise, they could end up in a wall." Zatanna explained, Batman glanced away, something in Zatanna's explanation having clicked for him.

"What about the talisman? If the Slender Man does have it-…" Batman said, letting his sentence drop off intentionally.

"Destroy it. I'm enchanting all my talismans from now on to require a certain understanding of magic. Kinda like putting a password on a computer, it'll keep the wrong person from using it." Zatanna said before Batman looked back towards her.

"Now for the reason I came here." Batman said, surprising Zatanna.

"You mean the stimulating conversation wasn't enough?" Zatanna asked with a playful smile.

"The talisman issue was a new development I hoped you could shed light on. I came here intending to ask you about one of your employees: Wilhelmina Carde." Batman said as Zatanna shrugged helplessly.

"Can't help you there, Batman. She quit just four days ago. Her uncle was in an accident and she's had to help take care of him." Zatanna said as Batman turned to leave.

"Thank you for your time, Zatanna." Batman said, but before he could vanish, he felt Zatanna's hand on his shoulder, stopping him.

"Did you even read my note?" She asked, curiously.

"Yes. And I still can't, Zatanna." Batman said, holding up the note in question. It was a plain white card that, when held up to the right light, displayed a message in disappearing ink that read _"Call me. – Z."_

"You can't call me?" Zatanna asked, with a smirk.

"You know what I mean." Batman replied before stepping into the shadows.

"But that doesn't mean I won't stop trying." Zatanna said into the shadows but got no reply.

* * *

**11:50 PM  
Batcave**

Bruce, still in costume but with his mask pulled back, sat at the computer in the Batcave as Dick Grayson, his mask in his pocket, along with Tim and Cass, both unmasked, stood behind him.

"When I heard you telling me it was the Slender Man, I thought you were kidding. Then I remembered you never kid." Dick said with his arms crossed over his chest.

"So how did you beat him?" Tim asked Cass who reached into her pocket and handed him a crumpled wad of paper. It was a twenty dollar bill. Tim rolled his eyes at her meaning and pocketed the bill.

"Okay you just forfeited that twenty. But seriously, how did you beat him?" Tim asked.

"We didn't. He just disappeared." Dick replied.

"He's using a talisman Zatanna made that allows for teleportation to aid in his abductions. First, he gasses his victims with the lesser fear toxin, either before or after he makes his presence known to them. The toxin is strong enough to render them unconscious where he then abducts them, leaving behind a page from the game as a calling card, before teleporting away with his victims using the talisman." Bruce explained.

"But why, is the question. Are they random or is there a connection?" Dick asked.

"There is a connection. Dr. Brooks, the Gotham Academy school counselor. He knew each of the victims." Tim said as Bruce pulled up a flowchart showing how each of the victims tied in with the doctor.

"Elaine Williams was part of the group that started the tradition of pulling pranks during Dr. Brooks' camping trips five years ago. Jonathan Raymond was accused of injuring another student during the most recent trip, forcing the Principal to cancel all future camping trips, and Detective Montoya investigated the case but found no substantial evidence to support a charge." Bruce explained.

"The doc also used to work for the Gotham PD crime labs, and was able to identify the compounds used in Scarecrow's fear toxins so he knew the formula to creating it. Plus his niece was a victim of the Scarecrow once." Tim added.

"So the doctor's the culprit?" Dick asked.

"Couldn't be. He had an airtight alibi for the third abduction. Batman was interrogating him at the time." Tim replied.

"Not if he had that talisman." Dick argued.

"Doctor Brooks lives on the South East side of Gotham and the abductions have all taken place North and West of the city. Even with the talisman he wouldn't be able to have gotten to Gotham National Park in time to abduct Detective Montoya. Plus, he's physically incapable of carrying an unconscious person." Bruce explained, pressing a button and causing a digital copy of an X-ray and a medical report to appear on the screen.

"He's had back surgery." Dick said with a sigh, rubbing his forehead.

"But the reason he even needed surgery was because of an accident." Bruce said as he brought up a file marked with the Batman insignia, designating it as one of Batman's own files. Dick, Tim, and Cass each gathered around curiously.

"Five days ago, he was chaperoning a school field trip to the Cyrus Pinkney National History Museum, when a student accidently knocked over a display. When the display fell, the student at fault was pushed out of the way by another person who was pinned underneath it, breaking his leg." Bruce explained, bringing up a photo of a twenty year old African-American male with a caption reading "Tyrone Green."

"The missing member of the original gang of pranksters from the first Psych Hike! That's how he broke his leg!" Tim exclaimed in realization. Cass started rapidly tapping out a comment.

"_I was there! Broke his leg bad!" _Cass said.

"Dr. Brooks tried to help free him but threw out his back in the process. When his back gave out, witnesses say they saw him stagger back and fall against another display, injuring himself to the point he required surgery." Bruce explained.

"So…these abductions…they're revenge driven?" Dick asked curiously. Bruce turned and pressed a button on the computer, causing another image to appear on the screen.

"Wilhelmina Carde, Dr. Brooks' niece by his sister, lives with the Doctor. She worked at Zatanna's club until the day after Dr. Brooks' accident and knew all of the victims. She dated Jonathan Raymond until the camping trip when he nearly injured her in a prank gone wrong and she was noted for being outspokenly upset that the Police were dropping the case due to a lack of substantial evidence. She vocally blamed Detective Montoya for the case being dropped." Bruce explained.

"But what about Elaine Williams? She was just one of several students responsible for starting the pranking tradition." Tim said before Cass smirked and held up a sheet of paper with the Gotham Academy logo on it.

"That's why I sent Cassandra and Dick to break into Dr. Brooks' office. He kept illegally duplicated records on the students and the file on Elaine Williams was what they were looking for. She was credited as the mastermind behind most of the pranks on the camping trip while her friends only acted as accessories." Bruce explained.

"Problem. Look at Willy's height measurements. She's four foot nine, and the Slender Man was at least seven or eight feet tall." Dick said, pointing at the info on Willy. Bruce calmly opened a browser window, revealing a social networking site with Willy's profile. On it was a photo of her and her uncle but for some reason, she seemed to be standing a few feet higher than him. Cass then started tapping out another message.

"_Sitting?" _Cass asked, referring to Dr. Brooks. Bruce then switched to another shot of Willy, dated back when she worked at Zatanna's Club during a rehearsal, but she was standing on a pair of spring stilts.

"Zatanna forwarded her employment records on Carde to me. Willy occasionally was asked to assist in some of Zatanna's magic acts and used spring stilts as a part of them." Bruce explained.

"And the arms?" Tim asked.

"Extension arms, shaped like human hands, and rigged with a form of aerosol sprayer for the fear toxin. When I was at Dr. Brooks' home, I saw a few inside the house. When I examined one I noticed it had faint traces of the fear toxin on it near the hand, indicating that it had been around the fear toxin." Bruce explained.

"But how was she able to predict that her victims would be where they were at the time of their abductions?" Tim asked.

"Carde knew about the tradition and was able to use social networking sites to learn when Williams went on the camping trip. She knew Raymond was dealing and she probably went with him when he went to pick up more drugs. And Dr. Brooks used to work for the GCPD crime lab and might have owned a police scanner, which would allow Carde to listen in and learn about where Detective Montoya would be. Plus she knows at least ten different locations that coincide with the locations of the game so it's only a matter of waiting until her victim came within range of one." Bruce explained.

"But why? Why would she do this?" Tim asked.

"Revenge for her Uncle. After she was gassed by the Scarecrow, she was ordered to undergo a full psychological evaluation. She suffers from Dependent Personality Disorder, meaning she relies on other people for her emotional and physical needs, but in her case she forms the attachment to only one person almost to a fanatical level and she projected this attachment onto her Uncle." Bruce explained.

"So in other words she's the perfect henchwoman. She'll do anything the person she admires tells her to without question." Tim said as Bruce nodded.

"So we have her. Wilhelmina Carde is the Slender Man." Dick said as he cracked his knuckles.

"No, she's not." Barbara said as she rolled into the Batcave. She was still wearing her dress.

"Whoa, Barb, you look fantastic!" Dick commented, earning an appreciative smile from the former Batgirl.

"Thanks, Dick. At least someone notices." Barbara said, subtly jabbing Bruce.

"I noticed." Tim groaned.

"_U would."_ Cass commented.

"Enough! What do you mean, Barbara?" Bruce asked.

"I just checked online and Wilhelmina Carde has an airtight alibi for the Slender Man sighting at Gotham Academy." Barbara said as she wheeled up to the computer and brought up a social networking site, showing several images of Carde at a party, the time and date stamps on when the pictures were posted, was at the exact same time that Blackbat and Nightwing were confronting the Slender Man and that the images had been posted directly from a cellphone.

"So it's not her." Tim said as he scratched his head.

"There's more. I just heard on the Police Scanners, one of Willy's friends reported seeing her get abducted by someone matching the description of the Slender Man." Barbara explained. At that, Bruce stood up from the chair, pulling the cowl over his head.

"Here's what I want you to do. Try and find the remaining locations that coincide with the Slender Man game." Batman ordered before storming towards the Batmobile.

"Where are you going?" Barbara asked but received no reply as the Batmobile roared out of the cave.

* * *

**End Chapter 5.**


	6. Mystery Solved

**12:33 AM  
4th of October  
Home of Robert and Irene Humphries (Scene of the fourth abduction).**

Multiple squad cars with flashing lights were gathered around outside of the two story home as numerous Police officers, including Commissioner Jim Gordon, as the Police combed the area for clues. One of the detectives was taking the statement of Julia Humphries, the sole witness. The Commissioner sighed as he looked at another crumpled piece of paper. In the center of the page was a circle with two X's on opposite sides of the circle while written on the top and bottom of the page was "Always watches, no eyes." The page had been found on the side of a dead tree that still stood in the Humphries' side yard.

"Commissioner." Batman said, emerging from the shadows. Jim, who was used to the Batman's surprise appearances, didn't even flinch.

"I really hope you've got something Batman. Four victims in four nights and we're no closer to solving this case than we were at the beginning." Jim sighed.

"Actually I think I do." Batman said.

"Really?" Jim asked.

"All of the victims so far are tied to Dr. Brooks in one way or another, so even if he isn't the Slender Man, he's somehow at the heart of it." Batman said as Jim shrugged.

"I just wish I knew why this Slender Man feels the need to leave these damn pages behind." Jim said as Batman took the page from his hand, looking at it carefully. He then switched on his cowl's detective mode and started looking the page over before he noticed something.

"Wait. What's this?" Batman asked as he turned the page around to the blank side.

"I don't see anything." Jim said as Batman started to approach the porch on the house, surprising the residents who, until that moment, had never seen the Batman up close. They quickly got out of his way as he reached up to the overhead porch light, carefully removed the covering over it, and then raised the page up close to the hot bulb, the blank side facing him. After a moment, he saw a series of black lines and markings start to appear on the blank side. Batman immediately turned to the Commissioner.

"Where do you keep the other pages from the previous crime scenes?" Batman asked.

"Headquarters, why?" Jim asked as Batman started to walk towards him.

"I need to see them."

* * *

**1:30 AM  
Gotham City Police Department – Office of Commissioner James Gordon**

"Here they are." Jim said as he brought in a file folder marked "Slender Man" and set it down on his desk. Batman immediately opened the folder and removed the three pages from their evidence bags, arranging them, facedown, into a tight square formation on an office cutting board next to where an old heater had been set up and turned on. After a moment, lines and markings started to appear on the pages. Batman then started moving the pages around until finally he had them arranged in such a way that most of the lines and markings matched up with the markings on the other pages.

"What does that look like to you?" Batman asked as he stepped back, allowing the Commissioner to step forward.

"It looks like…I don't know." Jim said as Batman hacked into the Commissioner's computer and immediately went online, pulling up a webpage before backing away. Jim quickly moved over to see that the website Batman had brought up was the site for…

(A/N: If you have the Batman Begins soundtrack, I'd highly recommend cuing up track 10: Molossus, for this next bit. Trust me, it'll help)

"Gotham Academy? What does that have to do with-?" Jim said, confused as he turned around to see that Batman had vanished again and his window was open. Outside, Batman glided down towards the ground but quickly fired his grapple gun back up towards the top of the GCPD building, flying rapidly up into the air and catapulting himself into the sky. Before he reached the apex of his launch, he pressed a button on his utility belt before opening his cape, gliding through the sky over Gotham, but not for long. He soon heard the scream of the Batwing's engines as said Batwing flew into his flight path, facing away from him and start to idle as the cockpit opened. Batman easily landed on the nose of the Batwing, turning and quickly climbing into the pilot's seat where Nightwing sat in the copilot's seat and Robin and Blackbat behind him.

"They're keeping the hostages at Gotham Academy." Batman said as he closed the cockpit, the Batwing immediately tearing off into the night sky afterwards.

"Wait, they?" Robin asked.

"So your hunch was right?" Nightwing asked, unintentionally ignoring Robin.

"When I saw Carde's psychological profile from when she was gassed by the Scarecrow, I knew she couldn't be acting on her own. She'd do anything to please him. Her own abduction was an attempt to throw off the cops." Batman explained.

"Who's they?" Robin asked.

"I'd've never believed it if I hadn't seen the files in Brooks' office." Nightwing said as he shook his head.

"Who are they?" Robin asked, growing impatiently.

"In childhood, he was always the victim of numerous teasing and prodding. So when Elaine Williams and her gang of friends started pranking him during the camping trip, it nearly drove him insane. Over the years and after being the victim of numerous pranks, he grew closer and closer to breaking, until the last trip, when his niece was injured in a prank gone wrong and the police were unable to make a case against Raymond, he finally snapped and began planning revenge." Batman explained.

"_THEY?!"_ Blackbat asked with her voice emulator.

"It was Carde's theft of Zatanna's talisman, skill with stilts, and her knowledge of the Slender Man meme coupled with his own knowledge of Scarecrow's fear toxin that gave Brooks what he needed in order to exact his revenge against the people that he perceives as having wronged him." Batman explained.

"But Carde had an alibi for the attack at Gotham Academy and was a kidnap victim herself! Who's the Slender Man?" Robin exclaimed, finally catching on to who they were.

"Carde and Brooks are both the Slender Man. Brooks had back surgery but not recently. He'd had the surgery years ago but the damage would still show up on an X-Ray. He faked having back pain after the accident at the museum to fool people into thinking he could hardly bend over, giving him medical records that made him seem like he was truly unable lift heavy objects and thus removing him as a suspect." Nightwing explained.

"And as the Slender Man he 'abducts' his own niece to remove her as a suspect as well." Robin added in realization.

"_How is Brooks the S.M.?" _Blackbat asked.

"When I interrogated Brooks at his house, he knocked over a photo of him in his younger days outside of Coney Island in New York as a stilt walker. I'd had Brooks and Carde as the Slender Men ever since Barbara said she had an alibi. I just needed to find a clue as to where their hideout was. I also saw the exact same kind of extension arms used in their Slender Man disguise at Brooks' house. My cowl also detected a long string of hair matching the hair color of the first victim caught in the arm's workings." Batman explained as he brought the Batwing to a stop over Gotham Academy, activating a series of controls.

"But where in Gotham Academy could they be hiding them?" Robin asked, Nightwing giving him a curious look over his shoulder.

"You mean you don't know about the-…oh right you never bother to read the school's history section in the newsletter." Nightwing said as Batman pointed to a display on the Batwing's console.

"Here, the old Bomb Shelter. It was sealed long ago." Batman said, pointing to a cavernous area located beneath the school with five human sized heat signatures inside.

"Bomb shelter?" Robin asked as Batman opened the cockpit.

"They broke ground on the Academy the day the Cuban Missile Crisis started. You better believe they added a bomb shelter." Nightwing said as they stood up.

"The entrance to the shelter is located in a closet in the cafeteria." Batman said before leaping onto the Batwing's nose then leaping off, gliding down with Robin, Blackbat, and Nightwing close behind, Batman, Robin, and Blackbat gliding in using their capes while Nightwing used a set of wings similar to the ones on a squirrel suit.

"_Batman, the Commissioner's just ordered all available units to Gotham Academy. If the Slender Men do possess a Police Scanner, they're going to know you're onto them." _Oracle said over the comlinks.

"Thanks for the heads up." Batman replied as they landed in the Academy's courtyard. Inside the bomb shelter, Brooks and Carde had indeed been tipped off due to the police scanner, and scrambled to pack what they needed as their three bound and gagged prisoners watched. They then heard a beeping sound coming from a surveillance setup that was tied into the School's security system. Carde ran to the monitors in time to see Batman, Robin, Blackbat, and Nightwing touch down in the courtyard.

"It's the Batman!" Wilhelmina shouted as Brooks cursed and started strapping himself into a pair of custom made spring stilts.

"Then let's give him a reason to fear the Slender Man." Brooks ordered as Wilhelmina grabbed the teleportation talisman but not before hitting a button on the security console. In the courtyard, the four heard a loud hissing sound fear gas was released into the courtyard from between the cracks in the concrete foundations.

"Fear toxin!" Batman yelled as they each quickly put a hand over their mouth and nose but it was no use, they had already inhaled the toxin. After a moment of staggering around in fear, they suddenly saw a door to the cafeteria open, revealing the Slender Man. Suddenly he was standing mere inches from Batman and swiftly came around with a swift punch, knocking Batman aside.

"You should never have come here, Batman." The Slender Man said as he kicked the fear-paralyzed Dark Knight in the stomach, the other three too fear stricken to help…or so the Slender Man assumed. The Slender Man suddenly felt the small hooks of a grapple gun dig into the back of his suit before he got yanked backwards before feeling two powerful legs plow into his back and knock him forward into the ground. He quickly rolled onto his back to see Blackbat charging towards him. He quickly swung his arms around and grabbed her by the head, a light hissing sound being heard when he did but Blackbat quickly put a Batarang between her middle and ring fingers in both hands before crossing her arms in front of her face and stabbing the points of the Batarangs into the Slender Man's arms, causing a white liquid to start spraying from the puncture spots.

"WHAT?!" the Slender Man exclaimed before Blackbat broke free before leaping up and coming down with the intent of kneeing the Slender Man in the crotch but before she could, he teleported clear, leaving Blackbat to land on the concrete floor. Blackbat turned just in time to receive a fierce blow to the face that knocked her away.

"You don't spend most of your life in Gotham and not learn to defend yourself!" Slender Man said before suddenly receiving a wing-ding to the face, causing him to stagger backwards. He regained his balance in time to see Robin climbing to his feet, a gas mask over his face and an empty phial in his left hand.

"On that, we agree." Robin said, pulling his Bo staff from behind his cape, extending both ends, and dropping into a fighting stance. Before he could do anything, he saw in his peripheral vision, another Slender Man appear in the doorway of the cafeteria, brandishing an AK-47 and open fire. The Boy Wonder quickly popped open a bullet shield on his Bo Staff, blocking the hail of bullets. As he continued to block the rain of bullets, the first Slender Man turned and shook his arms, releasing two punctured aerosol canisters.

"It always pays to pack some Bat-repellant." The Slender Man said as a whirring noise was heard just as Blackbat started running towards him. He raised his arms towards her and unleashed a jet of flames, forcing her to leap to the side in a spin, throwing a Batarang towards him but he dodged.

"Was that supposed to hit me, Batgirl?" Slender Man yelled, still pouring on the flames until suddenly, the Batarang flew around and hit him in the back of the head, causing him to stagger forward right as Blackbat dropkicked him, knocking him to the ground.

"UNCLE!" Slender Woman exclaimed as she turned the AK towards Blackbat only for a sudden cloud of smoke to burst up at her feet followed by a pair of feet plowing into her stomach, knocking her inside the cafeteria and onto her back. She staggered back up onto her stilted feet in time to see Nightwing, wearing a gas mask and holding the AK in his hands. With one move he disassembled the rifle and tossed the pieces aside before pulling his eskrima sticks from his back.

"I got twenty dollars with your name on it, skinny!" Nightwing taunted, tapping his sticks together. The Slender Woman raised her arms towards him, releasing a jet of flames from her arms, forcing Nightwing to evade. Robin came running in at the same time and soon had to evade the flames as well. Back outside, Slender Man was about to climb to his feet when he suddenly came face to face with the Dark Knight.

"It's over, Brooks." Batman said. The Slender Man quickly brought his free arm around towards Batman who quickly rolled clear just as the Slender Man fired a stream of flames towards him.

"Is it, Batman? You don't know what it's like to be tormented and taunted on a daily basis! To be made a laughing stock by…by children!" Slender Man yelled as the Dark Knight and Blackbat evaded constant streams of flames. Suddenly the flames stopped and the Slender Man disappeared. He reappeared behind Blackbat, pinning her in a half-nelson with one arm while pressing his arm against her head.

"Your move, Batman! I'll kill her!" the Slender Man yelled angrily.

"No, you won't." Batman said, fingering a Batarang behind his back. Before the Slender Man could blink, Blackbat had swung her whole body back, up over her head, kicking the Slender Man in the back, surprising him enough to weaken his grip on her. She slipped free of his grasp before leaping up and kicking him square in the back towards Batman who swiftly grabbed one of his arms and swung his hand with the Batarang in it through the arm, slicing clean through the metal extension arm and a tube of fluid that fed the crude flamethrower on the ends of the arm. As the Slender Man started to recover, he let go of the severed control to the arm, just as Batman wheeled back around and delivered a swift punch to the face, dazing him long enough for Batman to grab the Slender Man's other arm at the shoulder and deliver a fierce punch, dislocating it. The Slender Man screamed in pain as he staggered around, finally toppling to the ground. As Batman moved in to apprehend the injured Slender Man, he disappeared only to reappear back on his feet at the entrance to the cafeteria.

"WILLY!" the Slender Man yelled as he ran in, cradling his arm. The Slender Woman still had Nightwing and Robin pinned.

"We're leaving!" The Slender Man roared as he used his free hand to reach into his pocket, pulling out a remote detonator with a digital clock on it. He turned around to see Batman and Blackbat running in. The second he saw them, he pressed the button, the timer displaying a one minute countdown.

"You lose, Batman!" the Slender Man yelled as he tossed away the detonator and grabbed Slender Woman by the shoulder, both of them vanishing in an instant.

"Quick! The hostages!" Batman yelled as they made for the bomb shelter doors, running down the stairs where the three were still bound and gagged and several large barrels of gasoline nearby that were wired with explosives. Batman, Nightwing, and Robin quickly used sets of electric bolt cutters to break the chains binding the hostages while Blackbat noticed a large stack of papers nearby and grabbed them before they all ran for the door as the timer reached the ten second mark.

Outside Gotham Academy, a swarm of GCPD squad cars pulled up outside the front gates, Commissioner Gordon stepping out of one.

"Hurry! There may not be much time left before-!" Gordon exclaimed before the Cafeteria building suddenly exploded before the burning rubble collapsed down inside of a large pit that was once the bomb shelter, causing everyone present to jump backwards in surprise and horror.

"Lord I hope there was no one in that building when it blew!" Jim said as one of the other officers put in a call to the fire department.

"There's something moving!" an officer exclaimed, pointing towards one of the side buildings nearby as a door opened, and three figures came staggering out from inside. Jim recognized one of them instantly.

"My God, MONTOYA!" Gordon exclaimed as the three figures, Elaine Williams, Jonathan Raymond, and Detective Montoya, staggered and wheezed as they emerged from the side building. As Officers moved to help them, Jim started looking around for something, or specifically someone.

"Where's Batman?" he asked as he looked around but saw no sign of the Dark Knight or his companions. He then heard something beat on the hood of the car behind him and when he turned he saw a Batarang stuck under the windshield wiper blade, left as a sign. Jim smirked and shook his head as he heard the screaming of the Batwing's engines as it tore off into the night skies of Gotham.

* * *

**End Chapter 6.**


	7. The Eighth Page

**11:50 PM  
GCPD Headquarters – Rooftop.**

The Commissioner had stepped out of his office to take a smoke of his pipe and was just lighting his pipe when he heard footsteps behind him.

"Nice job getting Montoya and the other hostages out of there, Batman." Jim said as Batman emerged from the shadows.

"Did you get the papers from Montoya?" Batman asked as Jim nodded with a slight chuckle of disbelief.

"Yeah. The whole thing was over a bunch of harmless pranks?" Jim asked.

"Brooks had been tormented by them as a child and even today never took pranks well. Elaine William's starting of the pranking tradition on his camping trips exasperated things and his niece getting injured by one was the last straw. She wanted revenge like he did. He planned to abduct Williams and her three friends that had started the tradition of pranking him during the camping trips, Raymond for injuring Carde, and Montoya for dropping the case. They used the Slender Man meme as an alias to commit their abductions and they deliberately planned for themselves to be abducted on different nights in order to be removed from suspicion." Batman explained.

"They'll try it again though." Jim said, not quite comfortable with the idea.

"They're on the run now. Gotham is no longer safe for them, but even so they won't go far." Batman replied but Jim reached into the pocket of his overcoat.

"Then perhaps you should read this." Jim said as he handed Batman a piece of folded up paper. Batman started reading it as Jim took a drag of his pipe.

"Where did you get this?" Batman asked, looking up from the paper.

"It was in amongst the papers Montoya took from their hideout. They saved the best for last." Jim replied as Batman put a hand to his ear piece.

"Oracle, alert Arkham Security. The Slender Men are going to try and murder the Scarecrow." Batman said as he pressed a button on his utility belt and jumped off the side of the building, gliding his way down as the Batmobile raced into his flight path on the street below, keeping just enough of a pace so that he'd land in the driver's seat. The second he landed and the canopy closed, he was off, racing through the streets of Gotham towards Arkham Island.

"_Bruce, I just spoke with the Warden at Arkham! Scarecrow's escaped!" _Oracle said as Batman narrowed his eyes.

"Escaped? Or was he broken out?" Batman asked back.

* * *

**12:11 AM  
5th of October  
Arkham Island.**

"Move it Crane." Brooks ordered as Wilhelmina held a gun trained on the Scarecrow, the three moving out towards the cliffs near the edge of Arkham Island. Brooks had his left arm in a makeshift sling from Batman's previous dislocation of his shoulder. Both were in their Slender Man costumes but Brooks was missing one of the arms and they were both not wearing the masks. Crane was limping forward since he still was ailing from the stab wound from Zsasz.

"Do you honestly think that I fear you, Wilber? You forget that I myself am the master of fear itself." Crane commented. He was playing it very cool for someone who had a gun on him.

"Quiet you!" Wilhelmina ordered as she shoved him forward.

"So what's this about, Wilber? Revenge for my gassing your little niece all those years ago?" Crane asked with a smirk towards Brooks who snarled.

"I said be quiet!" Wilhelmina hissed, pistol whipping Crane across the face, knocking him to the ground. Crane began to laugh in amusement.

"Don't tell me! This is her! How exciting! A former patient that I can examine! Already the facts I've gotten from your mere presence and behavior is enlightening." Crane said as he climbed to his feet.

"You won't be examining anyone, Crane. We're ending you like we should've done a long time ago." Brooks said but Crane chuckled in amusement.

"No…I don't think you will. Right, Batman?" Crane asked, glancing upwards before a Batarang flew in and knocked the gun from Wilhelmina's hand. She immediately grabbed Scarecrow from behind with the flamethrower in her sleeves primed and pointed at Crane's head. Crane merely chuckled in amusement.

"This is so very dull." Crane said with a roll of his eyes before Wilhelmina was suddenly bowled over by a black blur, knocking her to the ground and freeing the Scarecrow. Brooks quickly reached for a gun in his waist belt but not before Crane produced a small metallic capsule and thrust it up towards Brooks' face, releasing a small cloud of Scarecrow's fear toxin. Brooks immediately started shrieking in horror as the Scarecrow leapt up and knocked him over onto the ground, grabbing the gun from Brooks' belt in the process.

"Now let us see which of us knows the meaning of fear!" Crane said with an insane grin as he cocked the gun. He was about to aim it at the Doctor when he was suddenly grabbed from behind by Batman, who punched him in the spot of his wound, and then in the back of the head, knocking him out.

"He's still gonna die Batman!" Wilhelmina yelled as she raised her arms towards him but Batman quickly threw down a smoke bomb. Wilhelmina blindly fired the flamethrowers into the smoke, but only a nearby shrubbery caught on fire. She suddenly felt the stilts get kicked out from under her, causing her to fall to the ground before hearing something snap. She tried to climb back up on the stilts but she could tell by their weight that they had been broken by the Batman. She quickly pulled the black suit pants she wore for the Slender Man costume off, revealing a pair of jeans underneath, and started quickly undoing the attachments to the stilts when she was suddenly shoved down to the ground, a Batarang pinning her arms to the ground and the fuel lines to the flamethrowers severed. Batman stood up off of Wilhelmina and started to turn towards Brooks when he saw that Brooks had recovered and was holding Crane's unconscious form up as a human shield, the gun pointed at Crane's head and backing slowly away from the Batman.

"He forgot who studied his toxin after his initial arrest." Brooks said, tears welling up from fighting the pain in his shoulder, as Batman started to approach but Brooks only pulled back the hammer on the gun.

"This is only ending one way, Batman. Crane dies, I get away. You still can't catch the Slender Man." Brooks said as Batman stood in place.

"You would leave Wilhelmina behind?" Batman asked but Brooks chuckled.

"Her? She's nothing without me. She'll do anything I tell her to without question, so don't try that game Batman! You forget I'm a psychiatrist so I know what you're trying to do." Brooks said, still backing up and not noticing the edge of the Arkham cliffs mere feet behind him due to a thick sea fog that was rolling in.

"Brooks! You're backing towards the cliff! Stop!" Batman yelled.

"What and have you try and keep Crane from dying? I think not!" Brooks replied as he reached the edge of the cliff.

"Brooks!" Batman exclaimed as he reached for his grapple gun.

"UNCLE WATCH OUT!" Wilhelmina shouted as one of Brooks' stilts slipped off the edge, causing him to lose his balance and tumble over the cliff with the unconscious Scarecrow. Wilhelmina let out a horrified scream as Batman leapt forward, firing his grapple gun down towards the two falling villains, snagging Scarecrow by one leg and Brooks by one of his stilts. As Batman started trying to pull them up, Brooks looked up from his upside-down position, confusion on his face as he heard the sound of something metallic breaking. He could feel the stilt caught in Batman's grapple line starting to break.

"You think you've caught me, Batman! But I can still escape!" Brooks shouted as he reached into his shirt but froze and started feeling around frantically for something.

"What? No. Where is it? Where IS **IT**?!" Brooks freaked before looking back up towards the cliff edge and saw Wilhelmina peering over the edge, a look of dire worry on her face, and a familiar talisman dangling from her neck. As realization dawned on him, he sighed with a smile.

"Willy…be good, kid." Brooks said softly before the stilt finally broke and he plummeted towards the rocky shore below, amidst Wilhelmina's screams of horror as Brooks fell to his death below. Batman had just gotten Crane back up onto the side of the cliff and had just enough time to grab a hold of Wilhelmina before she tried to jump off as well, keeping the anguish blinded teenager from committing suicide, simultaneously ripping the talisman from around her neck. Batman quickly knocked her out to prevent her from doing anything foolish just minutes before Arkham security arrived and recaptured Crane, taking him back to the medical ward. One of the doctors approached Batman and the unconscious Wilhelmina.

"She needs specialized care, doctor, and she'll need to be put on suicide watch." Batman said before turning away, vanishing into thin air before the doctor's eyes.

* * *

**10:42 AM**

"_In local news, Gotham Police have confirmed the death of Dr. Wilberforce Brooks, a student counselor at Gotham Academy. Dr. Brooks has been posthumously declared one of the perpetrators of the Slender Man abductions that have taken place over the past few days. Police Commissioner Jim Gordon added in an official statement that Dr. Brooks' niece, Wilhelmina Carde, aged fifteen and a student at Gotham Academy, has been charged with three counts abduction and four counts conspiracy to commit murder as part of the Slender Man abductions. She has been admitted to Arkham Asylum following the death of her uncle at the hands of Dr. Jonathan Crane, a.k.a. the Scarecrow who is also still in custody."_ The image of Jack Ryder of the Gotham News said before Bruce closed out the live-stream of the broadcast on the Batcave computer.

"So that wraps up the Slender Man case huh?" Tim asked as Bruce nodded but said nothing.

"Pity he left Willy to take the fall for it." Dick said as he checked his eskrima sticks for damage.

"She was just as much a victim as the people she kidnapped. Brooks used her as one would a tool." Bruce said as he looked at the talisman in his hand.

"_What R U going 2 do w/the talisman?" _Cass tapped out as Bruce walked over to a display case in the "museum" section of the Batcave where numerous trophies and mementos of some of Batman's previous cases were stored, along with some of the older costumes including Bruce's original Batman costume along with the original Robin costume and Barbara Gordon's Batgirl costume, even Jason Todd's memorial. He then proceeded to place the talisman inside of a glass display that had a top hat on it that belonged to Zatanna's father, who had taught Bruce to become an escape artist. He then turned and started to return to his chair.

"One question though. What use did the pages have?" Tim asked.

"Brooks intended for the cops to learn the location of their hideout after all of their victims had been abducted, giving them time to murder them then leave and be long gone with new identities to sustain them. The pages, when put together in the right configuration and when warmed enough, revealed the logo for Gotham Academy drawn in disappearing ink. They didn't count on my being able to recognize the logo even when it was half missing." Bruce replied.

"Oh well that makes sense." Tim said.

"Well, I best be going. Can't say this wasn't fun but crime doesn't rest in Blüdhaven and the criminals tend to go a little crazy if they hear that I've been in Gotham." Dick said as he put his eskrima sticks in the sidecar of his motorcycle.

"Feel free to drop by again soon." Tim said, Cass nodding and smiling in agreement, as Dick smiled to his family.

"You bet. And if you're in Blüdhaven, even for a friendly visit, just give me a call." Dick said, hopping onto his bike and roaring off out of the Batcave. Bruce watched him leave silently before turning to Tim and Cass who were staring at him curiously.

"What?" Bruce asked.

"We've been talking it over and we think you should dress up for Halloween this year." Tim suggested, Cass nodding in agreement.

"_You could go as Bruce Wayne!" _Cass said with a smile.

"Very funny." Bruce said as he leaned back in his chair.

"Or, you could go as John Wayne. See if people get the pun." Tim suggested.

"I don't do westerns." Bruce replied, smiling slightly.

"Okay then, who are you going to go as, Batman? Real original." Tim said, sarcastically.

"We'll see, won't we?" Bruce asked back with a smirk as he turned back towards the computer.

"I give up. Alfred's right. There's not a funny bone in his body!" Tim groaned as he headed for the elevator back upstairs, leaving Cass with Bruce.

"What is it, Cassandra?" Bruce asked. Cass reached over him and pointed to the icon for "Slender: The Eight Pages," with a curious smirk on her face.

"What about it?" Bruce asked back as she reached for the keyboard, opening an empty notepad file and typing her response.

"_Wasn't there before. I didn't put it there. Tim?" _Cass typed. Bruce smiled back and immediately opened a web browser before bringing up the webpage to the Gotham Gaming Clan and using the cursor to point at a line of text that read…

"_Gotham Gaming Club – Founder: Bruce Wayne."_

"You and Tim aren't the only ones who play computer games to unwind now and then." Bruce said as Cass snickered and ran off, leaving Bruce as he clicked the icon to the game, yet in the back of his mind, he knew that he'd be seeing the Slender Man again…and not in the game.

* * *

**End Chapter 7.**


	8. Trick or Treat

**1:37 AM  
31st of October  
Arkham Asylum**

Commissioner Gordon always knew a call from Arkham meant trouble. What kind of trouble always varied, but luckily there wasn't the threat of immediate danger to him or his officers this time around but it did mean that there could be trouble in the future, as a gaping hole in the side of one of the asylum walls on the ground floor leading into a now empty cell indicated. Jim was scratching the back of his neck when he heard the sound of footsteps approaching behind him.

"Happy Halloween, Jim." Batman said as Gordon sighed heavily.

"You know I half expected something like this to happen on Halloween of all days. It always seems to be when all the freaks come out." Gordon said.

"My sources say that only one inmate escaped and that they had help doing so." Batman said as he started to inspect the rubble.

"Yeah, it was the girl from the Slender Man case. Someone broke her out, but why I don't know." Jim said as Batman noticed the walls were covered in writing that had been carved into the walls. The writing looked like a series of mathematical formulas.

"Perhaps this will give us our clue." Batman said as he looked the wall over.

"I hope so. Do you know what it is?" Jim asked as Batman continued reading the wall, performing the calculations in his head.

"It looks like the formula to the Scarecrow's fear toxin…but it's missing a few key ingredients. This is the formula for Slender Gas." Batman said, turning to Jim who let out a nervous groan while rubbing his forehead.

"Oh that's just dandy. She could be a menace if we don't find her soon." Jim said but Batman shook his head.

"Not on her own. Her psychological profile indicates that she latches onto a single person, easily bent to another's will. And given the psychological trauma she suffered with the death of her uncle, she'll be extra vulnerable." Batman explained.

"But the only person who would have use for her formula is still locked up. Crane's still here in Arkham." Jim said but Batman shook his head, noticing a crude drawing of a bat with a blade made out of the filed down handle of a toothbrush stuck through the center.

"No, the Slender Gas isn't the reason someone broke her out tonight. I'd be surprised if the formula to the gas was even a factor in the motive for breaking her out." Batman said as he saw a pair of orderlies pass buy with a stretcher between them. Lying on the stretcher was a dead security guard. The sight of the dead guard's face however made Batman narrow his eyes as he turned to leave.

"And I know who it was." Batman said as he walked away. Jim arched a confused eyebrow and turned towards the passing orderlies. When he saw the guard he immediately saw what the Dark Knight did…

…the dead guard's face contorted into a hideous grin.

* * *

**1:39 AM  
Gotham City –Location Unknown.**

Wilhelmina Carde struggled as two pairs of strong arms hoisted her out of the back of a van. A bag was on over her head so she couldn't see but she could oddly hear a recording of a piano playing Chopin in the background.

"We've got 'er boss! Where do ya want 'er?" one of the goons asked.

"Set her down over there if ya please." A woman's voice with a thick Brooklyn accent said as Carde was forced to sit in a chair, her hands bound behind the chair but the mask remaining until finally the mask was pulled off, revealing a very odd scene. It looked like the inside of a warehouse turned circus tent, full of various colors but with a dark and sinister feel to it as several rusted or tattered clown themed facades lay scattered around. Carde looked up to see a woman with blond hair in pigtails with the pigtails died red on one side and black on the other. The woman wore a coat of white clown makeup with red cheeks while wearing a tight fitting red and black leather outfit.

"Well hiya sweetie! We've been expectin' ya." The woman said in a sing-song voice, confusing Carde.

"Who are you? Where am I?" Carde asked as she struggled to get out of the chair.

"Now don't ya worry a hair, sweetie. Your aunty Harley and Uncle J. are gonna take good care a ya." The woman said with a smile as the two goons, actually a pair of muscular men wearing clown masks, held the chair down. At that a man's voice echoed from the back.

"HarLEY!" the man yelled.

"Out here, Mista J! Our guest is here!" the woman yelled as the sound of footsteps was heard approaching from behind one of the facades until finally a tall lanky man wearing a purple suit and pants with a blue bowtie over a green shirt and yellow vest with a blue flower in his lapel and black and white wingtip shoes, walked out from behind one of the facades. Carde shuddered as she recognized the man's chalk white skin, green hair, and yellow teeth displayed in a grin. The man gasped with delight upon seeing Carde.

"Jumping Jiminy Christmas! Why if it isn't Wilhelmina Carde! The Slender Woman herself, come to pay her dear Uncle Joker a Halloween visit!" the Joker said with delight as he literally skipped over to her but paused half-way and glanced at a nearby boom box.

"Harley, kill the radio will you?" Joker asked as Harley smiled and casually pulled out a large gun of almost cartoon-like proportions, and shot the boom box, destroying it.

"That's better." Joker chuckled as he continued walking towards Carde who trembled at the sight of the infamous Joker, the villain that even the most hardened of criminals feared.

"Oh and what's with the ropes? Really boys? Is that any way to treat a guest? Punch! Judy!" the Joker yelled at his two goons who quickly untied her.

"W-W-W-W-What do you want with me?" Willy asked, fearfully.

"Straight to the point, I like this girl!" Joker said excitedly to Harley.

"She's definitely a keeper Mista J." Harley said as Joker squatted down enough so he could look at Carde at eye level.

"You know something kiddo, you and that Uncle of yours pulled one of the best Halloween tricks ever! The whole abducting people while wearing a mask and using stilts, planning to kill them and the Batman…and all because they got on your bad side. It takes a special kind of crazy to pull that off…and that's my kind of crazy!" Joker said with one of his insane grins.

"I-I-I-I-It wasn't a trick." Willy stammered. She couldn't believe she was even daring to argue with the Joker.

"Oh but it was! It was one of the best tricks I've seen. You and I, we're more alike than you think. The only difference is that you're much more tan than I am." The Joker chuckled as Willy looked up at him curiously but remained silent.

"But one thing we both have in common is we both have a problem with flying rodents. That mean ol' Batman ruined your plans and let your dear old uncle fall to his death. And yet here you are! Alone, scared, no one to take care of you, no one to call you their own…" the Joker said as Willy listened carefully, letting his words sink in. Suddenly the Joker leapt upright, slapping his knee as if a thought occurred to him.

"I know what you need! You need something that can replace that dead uncle of yours! Something that can give your fractured little mind a rest! Something that'll help you rattle the Batman's cage for doing what he did to you! Something like…" the Joker said before he leaned in close next to her ear and whispered "…me."

Willy was stunned. Could she had heard right.

"Huh?" she asked, confused.

"Think about it Willy, you, me and Harley, one big happy family, together until the ends of time. Doesn't it make you want to take that emergency exit to insanity? To just step outside and close the door on all those dreadful things that happened? To lock them away…forever?" the Joker asked with an oily tone, Harley shedding a tear with a sniffle, wiping the tear from her face with a hanky and smile before loudly blowing her nose on the hanky.

"You would…you would take me in?" Willy asked as Joker put his arms around her back.

"OFCOURSE I would! Think of it! Together, the three of us could take Gotham and bring it down to our level. We could give this town a wedgie the likes of which it's never seen!" The Joker said, motioning in front of the two of them as if motioning towards an invisible picture.

"What about…what about the Batman? He needs to pay for what he's done to me!" Willy said determinedly as Joker grinned and leapt to his feet.

"Come with us Willy dear, and we'll bring the Bat down with the rest of Gotham! Now whaddaya say kiddo? Are you ready to join your uncle Joker and aunty Harley for this boat ride down the river crazy?" the Joker asked, extending his hand, making sure as to show his palm had nothing in it. Willy looked at his hand for a moment and lowered her head. Harley arched a curious eyebrow for a moment before they heard it, something that made the Joker's grin widen. Willy was chuckling softly but that chuckling grew louder until it was laughter. She brought her hand around and grasped the Joker's own as her laughter became an insane cackle, Joker joining in on the laughter as he pulled Willy and Harley in together for a group hug.

"That's it! Group hug!" Joker exclaimed jovially. The goons nearby looked at each other for a moment before looking back at the Joker who glanced at them curiously.

"I SAID GROUP HUG!" Joker yelled furiously at them, causing them to quickly scramble over to the trio and join in the hug.

"Now then Willy, now that you're part of the Joker Family, you need a new name. Joker Junior won't work and Harley Quinn is taken. What will you be?" the Joker asked as Willy thought for a moment before a dark and twisted grin swept her face. She immediately grabbed Quinn's gun before turning and shooting both of the goons, murdering them in cold blood as the Joker and Harley watched proudly. Willy lowered the gun, a grin on her face.

"Call me…Wild Card."

**To Be Continued…**


End file.
